Search Results For: ghana
5 Sep
0
Why governments should embrace the Blockchain
William Mougayar, author of “The Business Blockchain” and member of the Ethereum Foundation, explains why governments should embrace the blockchain.
A few days ago we published an article where ICAP suggested on why banks must adopt digital currencies; today we want to talk about this new important opinion by Mougayar, who is convinced that the distributed ledger could improve government services.
Government services, in fact, are one of the most important and revolutionary use cases for this technology , so it is not a surprise that governments are working to develop their own blockchain-based applications.
During this year several cities and governmental institutions made their own plans for the ledger.
Singapore, Delaware, Estonia, Georgia, Ghana, Sweden, Switzerland, UK are just a few of many countries that developed a project related to the blockchain.
So, if your government is not working on the blockchain, they should, explained Mougayar.
As the blockchain is an early stage technology, it is easier to implement solutions at smaller scales.
How governments should embrace the Blockchain
What can your government do with the blockchain? There are four main areas:
- Verification: licenses, proofs of records, transactions, processes or events.
- Movement of assets. E.g. Transferring money from one person/entity to another.
- Ownerships: the blockchain is a perfect ledger to custody any asset.
- Blockchain can be used to give e-identities to its citizens, enabling a safer kind of voting.
So, government leaders should:
- Study the blockchain and explore its potential.
- Let people develop a blockchain strategy.
- Start experimenting with blockchain technology
- Develop new ideas to improve the quality of life of the citizens
Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.
23 May
0
5 ridiculous things used as a method of payment
5 items you can sell for your shopping
Some days ago Go Compare website published an interesting article about the weirdest currencies from all over the world.
In this funny list, they quote some incredible items used as a method of payment in several countries, including China, Siberia and more.
Read below the list of the 5 ridiculous things used as a method of payment.
Rai Stones
These particular kinds of stone are huge circular stone disks you can find in the Yap island, Micronesia.
Their value is based not only on its size, but also on its history. If many people died when the stone was moved or a famous person brought it in, the Rai stone value increases thanks to the anecdots related to it.
The greatest part of these stones are too large to move, so transactions are based on oral agreements.
Mobile phone Minutes
Egypt, Nigeria, Tanzania and Ghana, people began to buy and sell mobile phone minutes for small transactions. This method of payment works this way: you need to trade with prepaid cards or use mobile apps that let users send minutes to other people.
This method started to be used in 2011 and one minute values 1 unit of currency.
Seashells
In coutries such as Langa Langa Lagoon and Solomon Islands, seashells are used as a method of payment.
These seashells – that are very rare because of their value – are used to create jewels that can be sold to tourists.
Each string values approximately $90.
Tea
Tea is very popular in countries such as China and Tibet, where tea bricks are used as a method of payment as well.
Created from tea leaves, tea bricks could be used to buy livestock and pay taxes too. In Siberia and Tibet tea bricks could be eaten or used to cure some disorders such as coughs and colds.
Bottle Caps
In 2005 a beer company in Cameroon started to hide prizes under bottle caps. Competitors companies started to do the same and the result was that almost every cap had a prize on it.
Prizes include free beers, trips and cars, and winning cap became a method of payments to buy goods and service thanks to them.
Multicurrency Wallet – open it for free
Among the alternative payment methods there is Bitcoin, and to store this kind of coins you need a wallet.
To read more about how it works and to open a wallet for free here.
Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.
22 Feb
0
Barclays is using the Blockchain to help people in Africa
“The Blockchain could be the most significant innovation for Africa”, said Barclays.
Some days ago the well-known worldwide legacy bank Barclays stated that the blockchain could be the most useful technology innovation for the African continent.
“Blockchain could be the most significant social and political innovation to impact Africa in 100 years”, said Arian Lewis, head of Open Innovation at Barclays. “People in Africa do banking on their mobile phones, but our talent base is all built on bricks and mortar banking”, she continued.
Bitcoin is very popular in Africa
Also, on February 19th, Quartz Africa, a news website based in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, released a new report in which they revealed that bitcoin is very popular in Africa because it provides more accessility than banking services, even if this country has been “late to the fintech party”.
“I think the banking sector in Africa is going to be disrupted faster than anywhere else in the world”, said Lingham. “What you have with bitcoin and blockchain is a trustless method of operating. You don’t need third parties like banks operating as trust brokers anymore. It’s all built into the code. The way mobile leapfrogged fixed lines communications in Africa; blockchain will leapfrog a lot of the financial infrastructure that exists today”, commented Vinny Lingham of Civic startup in the report.
For this reason Barclays decided to start financing a blockchain startup based in Cape Town called Consent, a platform that uses the blockchain to store medical records.
Dream Bitcoin Foundation
Among the several startups who work in Africa, the nonprofit Dream Bitcoin Foundation (DBF) is one of the most important as it aims at facilitating the use and “acceptance of cryptocurrencies as an alternative form of payment by providing an online cryptocurrency exchange platform and merchant solutions”.
Its founder, Philip Agyei Asare, wants to raise “Bitcoin funds for projects that will build a bright future for Africa [in particular Ghana] by bringing together all young, ambitious and self-determining entrepreneurs and enabling them to achieve their dreams, without the need for government assistance”.
To do so, in March, 2015, DBF also organized a Bitcoin-focused event called Coinfest.
Bitcoin in Kenya
To prove the Bitcoin huge potential in Africa, we want to quote a short documentary, shoot in Kenya by filmmaker Tomer Kantor.
In 2014 he filmed Bitcoin in Kenya with his own IamSatoshi Production.
This video tells the story of MPesa, a service launched in 2006 that allows people to transfer value using their mobile phones in a peer-to-peer way.
Open your free digital wallet here to store your cryptocurrencies in a safe place.