NIGERIA’S bitcoin trade totaled at $44.4m in the month of August, rising from a previous high of $38.5m in May.
The increase brought the total trading volume of BTC from January to August in the nation to $284m.
This is according to data from Usefultulips, which combines data from two major peer-to-peer exchanges in the country, LocalBitcoins and Paxful.
Nigeria’s actual trading volume is estimated to be higher.
In January, the BTC trading volume was $31.9m. In February, it was $31.9m; in March, it was $33.6m. By April, BTC trading volume was $33.1m, and $38.5m in May. In June, it was $34.7m, and $35.9m in July.
In April 2021, Paxful said it had 1.5 million users. A recent report by Chainalysis said that the cryptocurrency market in Nigeria and other African countries has grown by 1200 per cent in the last one year.
According to the report, Africa received $105.6b worth of cryptocurrency between July 2020 and June 2021.
It said that P2P platforms were more prominent in Africa than other regions, and many African cryptocurrency users also rely on P2P platforms for remittances and commercial transactions.
The report said, “P2P platforms are especially popular in Africa compared to other regions, and many African cryptocurrency users rely on P2P platforms not just as an on-ramp into cryptocurrency, but also for remittances and even commercial transactions.
“Cross-region transfers also make up a bigger share of Africa’s cryptocurrency market than any other region at 96 per cent of all transaction volume, versus 78 per cent for all regions combined.”
The report also stated that the Central Bank of Nigeria’s ban contributed to the increase in P2P transactions in Nigeria, which made it difficult for customers to send money to cryptocurrency businesses from their bank accounts.
It added that no region uses P2P platforms at a higher rate than African cryptocurrency users, as they account for 1.2 per cent of all African transaction volume and 2.6 per cent of all volume for Bitcoin specifically.
