Coinbase Partners to Expand Digital Asset Access in Africa

Crypto exchange behemoth Coinbase is entering into the African markets by collaborating with local stablecoin exchange Yellow Card.

The significant move expands product access to Coinbase customers in 20 nations across the African continent.

Crypto is here to stay — helping drive a more open, accessible, and global financial system.

Coinbase products will now be available in Africa, starting with 20 countries across the continent. Learn more about our partnership with @yellowcard_app: https://t.co/IsZueHmbOU pic.twitter.com/Y0oZOwwdxr

— Coinbase 🛡️ (@coinbase) January 11, 2024

Yellow Card is a leading African stablecoin exchange with nearly 1.4 million users. The partnership would ease access to stablecoins with more convenient and affordable payment methods.

Chris Maurice, the co-founder and CEO of Yellow Card noted that the collab will empower the next one billion people across Africa to embrace the future of finance.

“We are thrilled to partner with Coinbase to bring the transformative power of Stablecoins to more people across Africa.”

On the other hand, Coinbase stresses that the expansion would also help increase economic freedom in regions that are plagued by high inflation, hefty fees, low transaction speeds and geopolitical limitations.

Further, the partnership specifically highlights the use of USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin for its much less volatility compared to local currencies.

Per the announcement, the move would particularly benefit small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Africa and other emerging economies. This is because SMEs face hurdles in opening USD and Euro accounts that impede their cross-border growth in Africa.

“Giving SMEs access to USDC effectively will mean access to the global financial system,” Coinbase noted. “Any merchant can set up a Wallet in less than 30 seconds.”

Africa: Youngest Continent

According to UN data, Africa  has the world’s youngest population with almost 60% of its population under the age of 25.

Coinbase believes that young people are more likely to recognize the benefits of crypto. “More than seven in 10 crypto owners globally (72%) are under age 34,” it stated.

Further, Africa is one of the fastest-growing crypto markets in the world, according to Chainalysis. Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa have the highest number of users in the region. Many citizens in these nations use crypto assets for commercial payments, but their volatility makes them unsuitable as a store of value.

Having a stablecoin such as the USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap, will address these issues. “Coinbase Wallet users will be able to easily send USDC without fees on any platform where they can share a link including messaging apps like WhatsApp.”