Senegal: Hope for the next “Bitcoin Beach”

Compiled by: vand

Typesetting: Xiaolu

Senegal is a West African country and a country that has evolved from the ashes of fraud, sovereign interference and lack of transportation into a thriving Bitcoin economic cycle.

Dakar, the capital of Senegal, holds the Pan-African Bitcoin Conference every year. There are more than ten companies and merchants that accept BTC payments, as well as the local PTOP BTC exchange, and various emerging communities.

Even in a bear market, within ten months of Dakar’s first offline event, the city held BTC Days, and BTC-related activities began to appear continuously. Why is BTC suddenly popular in Senegal? Is the country going to “hyperbitcoinzation” or bring about a mini “mass adoption”

Will Senegal be the next country in Asia, Africa and Latin America to follow in the footsteps of El Salvador? I want to know the answer, I missed the birth of Bitcoin Beach in El Salvador in 2019. But I don’t want to miss out on West Africa’s bottom-up Bitcoin circular economy again.

Let’s find out what it would be like if Bitcoin Beach was born in Senegal

Monetary Colonialism CFA

The French created the CFA (West African CFA Franc) currency system and controlled exchange rates; they even designed and printed the banknotes used in Africa. This means that a Frenchman in the university town of Clermont-Ferrand may have never set foot in Africa, but he designed CFA banknotes used by millions of Africans in 13 countries.

The West African CFA franc is currently pegged to the euro at a fixed exchange rate of 655.957 to 1. In 1994, the exchange rate with the former French franc dropped sharply from 1:505 to 1:100. Instigated by France, they worked with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to create a "currency devaluation" that wiped out the savings of the Senegalese people.

On top of that, French officials sit on the boards of central banks in French-speaking Africa and wield significant powers, including veto power.

Alex Gladstein of the Human Rights Foundation once explained: "Unlike the general fiat currency system, the CFA system is much more insidious. The CFA is monetary colonialism."

From Cuba to Türkiye, from South Africa to Serbia. I have never seen a greater need for monetary liberation than in Central or West Africa, and the most suitable option is BTC.

Birth of the next “Bitcoin Beach”

In January 2022, I noticed on Twitter that several bars in the diaspora area of Dakar (the capital of Senegal) had begun accepting BTC payments. You can buy crepes or bissap (a refreshing local drink made from hibiscus flowers) through the BTC Lightning Network while watching the waves at the beach.

This immediately brings to mind El Salvador’s civilian adoption program “Bitcoin Beach,” which ultimately aims to make Bitcoin the legal tender in El Salvador. This is exciting because perhaps Dakar could give birth to a “Bitcoin Tavern.”

At this moment, I desperately want to talk to people who are committed to the adoption of BTC.

Merchants committed to Dakar accept BTC

Nuru (not his real name), a tall, soft-spoken Senegalese man who spends much of his time working in France, is a distinctive Bitcoin advocate.

Nuru points to African wings during interview

Nuru returned to Senegal during the COVID-19 outbreak. But the chaos caused by the epidemic has not affected his dream of making Bitcoin the currency of choice in his hometown.

He returned to Senegal in 2021 to find that his friends and even family members had lost much of their savings to Ponzi schemes like Petronpay, as well as other popular cryptocurrency scams in Africa. So, he built the Bitcoin community in Senegal.

“I was the first to attend the first sapce we held at Clubhouse. There were only three or four of us at the beginning, but I kept doing sapce twice a week, then once a week. We used to have 10 , 20…or hundreds of people listening,” he told Cointelegraph about his attempt.

Peer-to-peer, purely using BTC

In February 2022, while traveling in Senegal, I attended the first Bitcoin gathering in Senegal. This is a landmark event where previous meetups were held on Twitter or Clubhouse. I was also blown away by the caliber of guests in attendance.

The room was packed with Bitcoin fundamentalists, Bitcoin maximalists, *entrepreneurs, central bankers. *Even professors from the best universities in Dakar. This atmosphere is in stark contrast to the Bitcoin meetups I’ve attended in Europe or the US, which, frankly, were just a bunch of white, millennial dudes talking shit.

In February 2022, Senegal held its first face-to-face BTC meetup. Noourou is second from the right and I am fifth from the left (back row)

I also see Nuru introducing three more restaurants on the Bitcoin network. Interestingly, many merchants use Bitcoin in its purest form: a peer-to-peer cash system.

They accept payments based on Bitcoin or the Lightning Network, while also holding Bitcoin, with the aim of using Bitcoin as the base currency in a circular economy. Nuru is developing an app that will allow merchants to convert cash into local currency, giving them access to cash when they need it.

In March 2022, I left Senegal happily. Some of the things I'm inspired by: **In places where Bitcoin is needed most, Bitcoin believers devote time and energy to educating others about money and ultimately Bitcoin. **

In August 2022, Nuru suddenly sent me a text message saying that he planned to host a Bitcoin forum in Senegal, as well as Dakar Bitcoin Days Dakar Bitcoin Days. This will be the first time Bitcoin enthusiasts from around the world will be on the African continent, sharing their passion for Bitcoin and discussing how to drive local adoption of BTC.

Dakar Bitcoin Days Dakar Bitcoin Days

Dakar Bitcoin Day brings together Bitcoin enthusiasts and economists from across Africa. From Cameroon to Congo, from Mali to Côte d’Ivoire to the Central African Republic, Bitcoin enthusiasts from across the continent have gathered here. In an interview, Nuru pointed to the African continent and said, “If we work together, Africa will fly.

Nuru backstage before the meeting started

Dakar Bitcoin Day presentations are in three languages, English, French and Wolof. Because French is the official language of Senegal and Wolof is by far the most widely spoken language. The Wolof event attracted the largest number of participants.

This event is also suitable for beginners and covers economics, finance, security and Bitcoin basics. While experts hold panel discussions about cryptography, there are also debates such as “Is Bitcoin Halal?” Let everyone know about the cultural insights related to Bitcoin in Senegal, a 97% Muslim country. The meeting was packed with students and young people.

Nuru shared with me his vision for Senegal. He explained that Senegal would lead West Africa out of the darkness of currency colonization. Bitcoin information in Africa must also be disseminated in a decentralized manner.

I want the message to switch. Africa is not a country — it is a continent. That's why we call it Dakar Bitcoin Days: If you come to Senegal, you will meet Senegalese; if you go to Mali, you meet Mali people. "Africa is not a country - it is a continent: if you come to Senegal, you meet Senegalese; if you go to Mali, you meet Malians."

There may be some similarities between different countries, such as shared histories and overlapping cultures, but Africa is as diverse as Europe. Activities are just like Bitcoin, they are decentralized and distributed. Let every region in Africa adopt Bitcoin.

Bitcoin in Senegal

During the conference, I also interviewed a merchant who accepts Bitcoin payments and the owner of a French expat bar. The bar only recently started accepting Bitcoin. Despite being completely new to decentralized currencies, Gary (name of owner) is excited to see new customers coming to the bar because of Bitcoin. When I chatted with him face to face, I managed to convince him to accept Bitcoin payments at his other tattoo shop.

A tattoo parlor now accepting BTC. A tattoo parlor now accepting Bitcoin

Praïnha, managed by Senegalese surfing team coach Renée Laraise, is the first restaurant in the region to accept Bitcoin. Surfing is one of the most prominent sports in Senegal after football, and he is also a spokesperson for the community as a surfing coach.

I also interviewed Bitcoin Mom. For three years, she traded Bitcoin for fish along the Atlantic coast. In a country where cash is king and banking services are often for the wealthy, trading Bitcoin for fish is a visionary choice. Banks in West Africa often charge high fees and impose strict requirements on users: withdrawing cash, for example, can cost several dollars.

During my second trip to Senegal, I gave away Bitcoin to over 70 people. The process is simple: I have them download a lightning wallet, usually a Satoshi wallet, and they click receive.

Wallets are custodial, meaning they don't actually hold the keys to your Bitcoins. But they believe that the Satoshi wallet will not make off with funds like Sam Bankman-Fried did. For newbies, this is already a good starting point.

I sent each of them a few thousand satoshis, the equivalent of a dollar or two in Bitcoin. I found it easy to distribute BTC in Senegal compared to other countries I have traveled to. People are eager to get money and eager to learn. Want to save in a currency that is not as easily stolen or devalued as a CFA.

*I give away free Bitcoins to attendees. It was evident from the smiles onlookers that this had become part of the entertainment at the conference. *

I gave away BTC to taxi drivers for seats on the beach, on the sidewalk, during conferences, in restaurants and bars, and gave away tips to hotel staff.

Mostly, I send Bitcoin to young people, boys and girls over 16 years old, and young men. The average age in the United States is about 40 years old, while Senegal's population is very young. If a mobile-native, internet-based currency was given the right to take off in Africa, it would be no surprise that it would take off.

After experiencing this, the idea of Bitcoin’s circular economy taking off in Senegal is even more convincing. People want Bitcoin; but there are no exchanges to buy it on, and international tourists coming to Senegal use Bitcoin for peer-to-peer payments. Therefore, Bitcoin can become a peer-to-peer currency in Senegal as envisioned by its white paper.

Mobile payment meets Lightning Network

Furthermore, mobile payments are already booming in Africa. The development of mobile payment companies, M-Pesa first became famous in Kenya, and then mobile payment companies sprung up all over Africa, often like Apple stores in European cities. Today, most Africans have smartphones and may not have regular electricity or free drinking water, but they do have the internet.

If you don't have internet, you can also pay using text messages. You just need to send a credit text message to send and receive payments like a bank transfer. The largest mobile payment company is called Wave.

The Wave logo can be found everywhere in taxi companies, restaurants, bars and cafes. It's a bit like the Lightning Network, but slower, more expensive, and uses local currency.

I tried to find Wave employees and preach to them to get them into the Bitcoin network. While watching the World Cup in a bar, I was lucky enough to meet a Wave employee. I immediately asked him to download a wallet and sent some Bitcoins. I connected to the bar's WiFi and sent him Bitcoin. He was impressed and said he would come to the meeting the next day, but I never saw him again.

There is an interesting story. In an interview with Wave’s marketing director, he shared his experience meeting and hanging out with Satoshi Nakamoto in Senegal.

The look on your face when someone says they know Satoshi Nakamoto

Senegal is home to some young digital natives, Bitcoin leaders, and mentors with respected social status. Annual conferences are also being held, more and more vendors are starting to accept Bitcoin, and as it turns out, sending money via mobile phone is also traditionally acceptable.

This is the face of Bitcoin in Africa and one way the continent can leapfrog developed countries. So why can’t we move beyond mobile money with Lightning Network?