African Law and Business Quotes Weyinmi Popo on Central African Republic Adopting Bitcoin as Official Currency

For its article, "CAR's Bitcoin gambit," African Law and Business has quoted corporate partner Weyinmi Popo.

The article discusses the decision by Central African Republic (CAR) to adopt Bitcoin as an official currency. CAR is the second country in the world to accept Bitcoin after El Salvador, in September 2021.

Popo said the decision is "eye catching, though economically questionable," noting that the statements from CAR's government focused more on being the first African country to adopt the cryptocurrency, rather than the economic merits.

He commented that attracting investment has "clearly been a challenge for a landlocked country that has been wracked by civil war, however, it is unclear how adopting Bitcoin would help with attracting investment."

In his concluding remarks, Popo said "given the currency depreciation of most countries in Africa against the US dollar over time, there would be some economic merit in considering allowing African citizens to use cryptocurrencies to hedge against depreciation and inflation."