Nigeria Launches Its First Bitcoin ATM

The largest country in Africa, Nigeria, is becoming savvier in the crypto sphere by the day. It recently launched its first Bitcoin ATM, which is also the fifteenth in the entire continent.

Blockstale BTM installs ATM

The ATM was installed in the Dazey Lounge and Bar in the state of Lagos by Blockstale BTM. It plans to start 30 more terminals across the country. Daniel Adekunle, the founder and chief executive of the company said,

“Despite all the legal uncertainties about cryptocurrencies in Nigeria, Nigerians happen to be the highest crypto traders in Africa.”

The company is developing these ATMs in partnership with a Shenzhen, China-based technology firm.

Nigeria has the highest trading volume for cryptocurrencies in Africa. It is also the continent’s largest economy with the biggest population. However, it is not the first country to launch a Bitcoin ATM. Before, seven countries have established 14 crypto ATMs in the continent. CoinATMRadar data suggests that South Africa alone has seven crypto ATMs. Ghana has two and Zimbabwe, Uganda, Kenya, Djibouti, and Botswana have one crypto ATM each. With a Bitcoin ATM in Nigeria, the crypto community can expect more developments and widespread adoption in the future.

Nigeria experiences drop in volumes

The Nigerian crypto community has faced some issues lately with the KYC overhaul of the industry. The volume on LocalBitcoins for the country dropped to 220 Bitcoins, worth about $1.38 million. Note that LocalBitcoins is a peer-to-peer trading platform, unlike a regular crypto exchange. The numbers have dropped by 50% since September 2019, when the platforms launched its stricter KYC requirements.

However, the Nigerian market is still thriving despite some issues. According to Google Trends, Nigeria constantly tops the Google searches for Bitcoin and drives 2x the traffic than the second-ranked country Austria. Interestingly, three of the top five countries in this list are African, including South Africa and Ghana. This indicates a rising trend in African countries to learn about and adopt Bitcoin in their daily lives.