Between Jan. 1 and July 4, the Nigerian share of Africa’s overall interest in cryptocurrency stood at 66.8%, a figure nearly eight times that of second-ranked South Africa’s share, according to the latest Coingecko report. South Africa, along with Morocco, Ghana, Egypt, and the Ivory Coast, accounted for 23.8% of the continent’s interest in cryptocurrency year-to-date (YTD).

High Inflation and Currency Woes Fuel Nigerian Interest in Crypto

According to the latest Coingecko Africa crypto report, Nigeria had “the highest level of crypto interest” on the continent with a share of 66.8%. The West African nation’s share of the continent’s crypto interest is nearly 8 times that of the next highest-ranked country South Africa.

The data in the Coingecko report is the latest to reaffirm Nigeria’s status as Africa’s number crypto nation both in terms of user curiosity and traded volumes. According to the report, poor traditional finance infrastructure, high inflation, and currency depreciation are some of the factors which explain Nigerian residents’ unparalleled fondness for crypto.

Top Six Countries Account for Over 90% of Africa’s Overall Crypto Interest

Meanwhile, the data also shows that in the period between Jan. 1 and June. 4, no other African country had a level of interest in crypto which surpassed 10%. In South Africa, the level of interest in crypto stood at 8.36% during the same period. Morocco, which jailed a crypto trader in 2021, is ranked third with 5.43% while Ghana is just behind with 5.24%. Inflation-stricken Egypt completes the top five with a crypto interest level of 2.74%.

As shown by the statistics in the report, South Africa, Morocco, Ghana, Egypt, and the Ivory Coast accounted “for 23.8% of the continent’s interest in crypto YTD [year-to-date].” The data also suggest that the top six countries’ share of Africa’s overall crypto interest level in the period under review was more than 90%.

The findings also suggest that just eight countries had a level of interest in crypto which exceeded 1%. According to the data, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, and Mozambique had the least interest in crypto among the surveyed African countries.

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