Economy
Crypto Trading is Thriving in Africa Amid COVID Restrictions
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has affected many people around the world. Due to the restrictions brought upon because of the spread of the virus, many people globally had problems going on with their regular daily lives.
Among many regions and parts of the world that suffered due to the spread of the virus was Africa. Many of the countries in the region reported increasing unemployment numbers. In such an environment, many Africans found crypto investments and trading as a way out of the hardships.
Crypto allowed people in the region the opportunity to transact their money freely and within a few minutes without having to deal with huge transaction fees. While the regulatory framework around crypto in Africa is far from being established, people are still using cryptos very actively.
The interest of Africans in the crypto trading market is increasing every single day in the region and showing the highest adoption rate of cryptos around the world. In some countries of Africa, the regulatory agencies are very strict when it comes to crypto activities.
In fact, some of the governments have totally banned crypto activities, including trading and investing. But, such heavy regulations seem to not affect the popularity of cryptocurrencies in the region. In fact, the interest has increased even more after such strict regulations were adopted in some of the African countries.
Africa is using the cryptocurrency market for numerous different reasons, including for doing business, protecting their savings and funds, and also sending and receiving funds overseas.
Why is Crypto So Popular in Africa?
There are many reasons behind the huge popularity of the crypto trading market in Africa. One of the main reasons why so many people have decided to turn to cryptocurrencies in the region is that they have had enough bad experiences with fiat currencies and they want to protect their funds from the effects of inflation.
Another very important factor that supports the popularity of the crypto market is that it lets locals send and receive funds without having to pay a lot of commissions and fees. In the region, peer-to-peer transactions are especially popular.
People in Africa are using cryptocurrencies for all different reasons. There are some people who are using it as an asset to trade, while others use it for day-to-day activities, such as selling goods, saving up money, or sending money to others.
As the national currencies of numerous African countries continue to depreciate, the population of the region had to find a way out of the situation. For many, cryptocurrencies are one of the only opportunities to preserve their wealth, while also watching it grow.
Another reason why so many people are showing such interest in the crypto trading market in Africa is that the market has become very easy to access for people of all backgrounds. Today, thanks to the increasing number of crypto exchanges offered to African traders, getting started in the market is very simple.
All they need to do is to open an account with one of the available crypto exchanges in the region, deposit funds, and start buying and selling cryptocurrencies.
In fact, trading cryptos does not require as much attention from traders anymore. This lets traders in the region go on with their day while making profits. It is possible thanks to the crypto trading robots, which are able to analyze the market in a matter of minutes for traders and make profits for them.
For example, while using an automated bitcoin trading robot, you will be able to sit back and let the robot make profits for you. There are different types of robots available in the market, some of them are able to analyze the market and provide traders with trading signals.
On the other hand, there are trading bots that are able to actually trade cryptocurrencies for you and make profits. The majority of the crypto robots use API keys to connect with crypto exchanges, which is a safe way of automated trading.
Crypto Trading in Africa
The past few years have been very important for the further development of the crypto trading market in the region. Amid the worsening situation in terms of economy and local currencies, the popularity of cryptocurrencies further increased.
Another important factor for the increasing popularity of the crypto trading market in the region was the Covid-19 pandemic. The ongoing pandemic caused numerous jurisdictions in the region to adopt different types of restrictions to curb the spread of the virus.
Due to the restrictions, many people were left without jobs and lost their income. In this situation, the demand for the cryptocurrency trading market has increased dramatically.
However, although crypto trading is very popular in the region, the local regulations are far from being in favour of the crypto trading market. Many of the countries in the region have restricted trading cryptocurrencies altogether, while others have issued warnings against crypto trading.
But, even this did not get in the way of the further development of the market. Cryptocurrencies are becoming more and more popular in Africa every single day and the easier access to the market makes it even more attractive for local traders.
However, due to the local restrictions, people are mostly using P2P trading platforms to participate in the market. This made Africa one of the most active regions in terms of P2P crypto transactions.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The duo of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc and Geo-Fluids Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.12 per cent on Monday, March 16.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N1.45 during the session to sell at N123.55 per share versus the previous price of N125.00 per share, and Geo Fluids Plc depreciated by 5 Kobo to N3.05 per unit from N3.10 per unit.
The losses recorded by the two securities lowered the market capitalisation by N8.88 billion to N2.480 trillion from N2.489 trillion, and crashed the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 14.86 points to 4,145.60 points from 4,160.46 points.
On the first trading day of the week, the value of securities transacted by investors went up by 10.8 per cent to N33.2 million from N29.9 million, but the volume of securities dipped 97.5 per cent to 265,610 units from 10.4 million units, and the number of deals decreased by 43.5 per cent to 26 deals from 46 deals.
At the close of trades, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc was the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 38.6 million units sold for N2.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 6.4 million units traded for N1.2 billion, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 6.5 million units worth N609.6 million.
Resourcery Plc closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.6 million, trailed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 130.8 million units transacted for N504.5 million, and CSCS Plc with 38.6 million units exchanged for N2.4 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira opened the week stronger against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, March 16, by N8.46 or 0.62 per cent to trade at N1,357.77/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366.23/$1.
In the same vein, the local currency appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment yesterday by N23.45 to quote at N1,789.54/£1 compared with last Friday’s value of N1,812.99/£1, and improved its value against the Euro by N9.72 to N1,558.31/€1 from N1,568.03/€1.
Similarly, the Naira gained N5 against the greenback in the parallel market during the trading session to sell for N1,395/$1 compared with the previous rate of N1,400/$1, and closed flat at the GTBank FX desk at N1,385/$1.
The pressure that piled on the domestic currency appeared to have eased, buoyed by higher oil prices, which have continued to bolster market sentiment.
A report by Coronation Merchant Bank Research said Brent crude prices advanced by 11.16 per cent week-on-week, rising from $91.00 per barrel to close at $101.16 per barrel amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
The bank noted that developments in the region heightened concerns about potential disruptions to global oil supply, increasing volatility in energy markets.
Nigeria recorded modest portfolio inflows as investors sought higher-yielding opportunities, but the inflows helped support liquidity in the FX market and contributed to the Naira’s recovery during the past week.
Also, Nigeria’s inflation cooled to 15.06 per cent in February 2026 from 15.10 per cent in January 2026, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.
As for the cryptocurrency market, prices continued to weigh the tensions around the Strait of Hormuz — a critical oil shipping route between the Persian Gulf and global markets — appeared to ease slightly.
US President Donald Trump called on other nations to help secure the waterway, while some tankers reportedly have crossed the Strait, suggesting that traffic through the corridor has not been fully disrupted.
This weakened some coins, including Dogecoin (DOGE), which slumped by 1.7 per cent to $0.0998, and Cardano (ADA), which depreciated 1.6 per cent to $0.2832. Binance Coin (BNB) lost 1.5 per cent to sell for $674.25, TRON (TRX) declined by 0.6 per cent to $0.2964, and Solana (SOL) dropped 0.2 per cent to $93.66.
On the flip side, Ripple (XRP) jumped 2.2 per cent to $1.51, Ethereum (ETH) grew by 1.5 per cent to $2,302.08, and Bitcoin (BTC) appreciated by 0.1 per cent to $73,951.40, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
By Dipo Olowookere
The All-Share Index (ASI) of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited reached an all-time high of 201,474.89 points on Monday after adding 3,067.59 points or 1.55 per cent to its previous closing figures of 198,407.30 points.
Buying pressure in three of the five key sectors sustained the upward trend on Customs Street during the trading session, analysis of the market data revealed.
The industrial goods sector appreciated by 4.52 per cent, the banking index improved by 2.20 per cent, and the consumer goods space rose by 0.03 per cent.
However, the insurance sector experienced profit-taking, which crashed it by 0.43 per cent, and the energy counter lost 0.08 per cent due to sell-offs.
When the bourse ended for the day, the market capitalisation chalked up N1.969 trillion to settle at N129.330 trillion compared with last Friday’s M127.361 trillion.
BUA Cement led the advancers’ group yesterday after growing by 10.00 per cent to N297.00, Premier Paints jumped 9.79 per cent to N21.30, John Holt expanded by 9.52 per cent to N10.35, Guinea Insurance soared by 9.38 per cent to N1.40, and Fortis Global Insurance grew by 9.32 per cent to N1.29.
On the flip side, VFD Group led the laggards’ gang after it gave up 10.00 per cent to close at N11.25, Royal Exchange shed 9.63 per cent to settle at N1.69, Omatek depreciated by 9.62 per cent to N2.35, Sovereign Trust Insurance lost 9.00 per cent to quote at N1.92, and Regency Alliance slipped by 8.94 per cent to N1.12.
Yesterday, a total of 948.2 million stocks valued at N49.2 billion were traded in 72,735 deals compared with 591.0 million stocks worth N35.0 billion transacted in 53,066 deals in the preceding session, representing an improvement in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 60.44 per cent, 40.57 per cent, and 37.07 per cent apiece.
The activity log was led by Sovereign Trust Insurance, which traded 72.6 million equities valued at N147.1 million, Access Holdings sold 69.9 million shares for N1.8 billion, First Holdco exchanged 67.0 million stocks worth N3.4 billion, Zenith Bank transacted 60.0 million equities valued at N6.0 billion, and Nigerian Breweries exchanged 55.0 million shares worth N4.0 billion.
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