FG in Talks With Binance to Develop a Digital City for Blockchain Technology Advancement in Nigeria

• The federal government is on the verge of reaching an agreement with Binance to develop a digital city
• The digital city, the government, believes we help harness the power of blockchain technology for the benefit of Nigerians
• There are five areas the Nigerian economy can benefit from blockchain technology which the FG seeks to promote

The federal government and cryptocurrency platform Binance Holdings Ltd. are discussing establishing a digital economic zone to help entrepreneurs fast-track blockchain technology.

According to a statement from the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, the partnership aims to build a digital hub "similar to the Dubai virtual free zone."

Bloomberg reports that the federal government is targeting digital technology as a means to help diversify the economy away from crude oil, taking advantage of an increasingly connected and youthful population.

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Cryptocurrency has gained considerable acceptance amongst the Nigerian youth over the years — in the face of the Nigerian naira's staggering inflationary local fiat currency and its plummeting value in the parallel foreign exchange market.

A study by price tracker CoinGecko revealed Nigerians showed more interest in cryptocurrencies than any other country since the digital assets began to decline in April.

More so, fintech startups such as Interswitch Ltd. and Flutterwave Inc. have emerged in the space and achieved billion-dollar-plus valuations.

What is blockchain

A blockchain is an open-source distributed database that reduces human interference in securing, verifying and maintaining data.

According to Techpoint, it is currently one of the world’s hottest technologies, and all of the hype around it is more from the excitement of its endless potential than its actual application.

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Here are the five areas it expected Nigeria can benefit from blockchain technology

• Budget Tracking
• Financial Inclusion
• Access to Credit Facilities
• Unified Database
• Free and Fair Elections

Kenyan court freezes Flutterwave and several Nigerians’ accounts

In another story, Legit.ng reported that a Kenyan High Court seized Sh7 billion ($59 million), or N24.50 billion, from 56 accounts linked to fintech, including Nigeria's Flutterwave, on the grounds that they were used as conduits for money laundering while offering merchant services.

This was revealed in an evening story by Kenya's The Star on Wednesday, July 6, 2022.

Flutterwave Payment Technology Limited, Boxtrip Travel and Tours Limited, Bagtrip Travel Limited, Elivalat Fintech Limited, Adguru Technology Limited, Hupesi Solutions, Cruz Ride Auto Limited, and one Simon Ngige are among the impacted fintechs.

Source: Legit.ng