Senegal: The Hope for the Next "Bitcoin Beach"

Original Author: Joseph Hall

Original Title: 《Bitcoin in Senegal: Why is this African country using BTC?》

Translation: Asia-Africa-Latin America Web3 Research Institute Translation Team

Senegal is a West African country that has evolved from the ruins of scams, sovereign interference, and transportation difficulties into a thriving Bitcoin economic cycle.

The capital of Senegal, Dakar, hosts an annual Bitcoin conference for pan-African countries, with over ten businesses and merchants accepting BTC payments, along with local PTOP BTC exchanges and various emerging communities.

Even in a bear market, within ten months of hosting its first offline event, Dakar held BTC Days, and activities related to BTC began to emerge continuously. Why has BTC suddenly become popular in Senegal? Is this country heading towards "hyperbitcoinization," or is it bringing about a small-scale "mass adoption"?

Will Senegal become the next country in the Asia-Africa-Latin America region to follow in El Salvador's footsteps? I want to know the answer. I missed the birth of El Salvador's Bitcoin Beach in 2019, but I don't want to miss the grassroots Bitcoin circular economy in West Africa.

Let's explore what it would be like if Senegal also gave birth to a Bitcoin Beach.

Currency Colonialism CFA

The French created the CFA (West African Franc) currency system and control the exchange rate; they even design and print the banknotes used in Africa. This means that a French person in Clermont-Ferrand may never have set foot in Africa, yet they design the CFA banknotes used by millions of Africans in 13 countries.

The West African Franc is currently pegged to the euro at a fixed exchange rate of 655.957 to 1, having been significantly devalued from a rate of 1:505 to 1:100 in 1994 against the former French Franc. At France's instigation, they collaborated with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to create "currency devaluation," which wiped out the savings of the Senegalese people.

Most importantly, French officials serve as board members of the central banks in French-speaking Africa and hold significant power, including veto rights.

Alex Gladstein from the Human Rights Foundation once explained: "Unlike typical fiat currency systems, the CFA system is much more insidious. The CFA is currency colonialism."

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

The Birth of the Next "Bitcoin Beach"

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

This immediately reminded me of El Salvador's grassroots adoption initiative "Bitcoin Beach," which aims to make Bitcoin the legal tender of El Salvador. This was exciting because perhaps Dakar could give birth to "Bitcoin Taverns."

At that moment, I was eager to talk to people dedicated to the adoption of BTC.

Merchants in Dakar Committed to Accepting BTC

Nourou (a pseudonym) is a tall, soft-spoken Senegalese man who works most of the time in France and is a unique Bitcoin advocate.

Nourou points to Africa during an interview

Nourou returned to Senegal during the COVID-19 outbreak, but the chaos caused by the pandemic did not deter him from his dream of making Bitcoin the preferred currency in his hometown.

When he returned to Senegal in 2021, he found that his friends and even family had lost most of their savings due to Ponzi schemes like Petronpay and other popular cryptocurrency scams in Africa. So, he established a Bitcoin community in Senegal.

"I was the first to join the first Space we held on Clubhouse (a social app). We started with only three or four people, but I persisted in holding two Spaces a week, then once a week, as we slowly had 10, 20… even hundreds listening." He shared his efforts with Cointelegraph.

Peer-to-Peer, Purely Using BTC

In February 2022, while traveling in Senegal, I attended the first Bitcoin gathering in Senegal. It was a milestone event, as previous gatherings had been held on Twitter or Clubhouse. The caliber of attendees also shocked me.

The room was filled with Bitcoin maximalists, Bitcoin purists, entrepreneurs, and central bank governors, even professors from the best universities in Dakar. This atmosphere starkly contrasted with Bitcoin gatherings I attended in Europe or the U.S., which frankly were just gatherings of white men and millennials singing the praises of shorting the franc.

February 2022, Senegal's first face-to-face BTC meetup, Nourou is second from the right, and I am fifth from the left (back row)

I also saw Nourou introduce three more restaurants to the Bitcoin network. Interestingly, many merchants were using Bitcoin in its purest form: a peer-to-peer cash system.

They accepted payments based on Bitcoin or the Lightning Network while also holding Bitcoin, intending to use it as the base currency in a circular economy. Nourou is developing an app that allows merchants to convert cash into local currency, enabling them to access cash when needed.

In March 2022, I left Senegal feeling inspired. I realized that in the places where Bitcoin is most needed, Bitcoin believers are dedicating time and energy to educate others about money and ultimately Bitcoin.

In August 2022, Nourou suddenly texted me, saying he planned to host a Bitcoin forum in Senegal, as well as Dakar Bitcoin Days. This would be the first time Bitcoin enthusiasts from around the world gathered on the African continent to share their passion for Bitcoin and discuss how to promote local adoption of BTC.

Dakar Bitcoin Days

Dakar Bitcoin Days gathered 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 all over the continent came together. Nourou pointed to the African continent during an interview and said, "If we work together, Africa will soar."

Backstage before the conference starts, Nourou

Dakar Bitcoin Days featured speeches in three languages: English, French, and Wolof. French is the official language of Senegal, while Wolof is the most widely spoken language to date. The events in Wolof attracted the most participants.

The event was also suitable for beginners, covering topics such as economics, finance, security, and the basics of Bitcoin. Experts held panel discussions on cryptography, as well as debates on topics like "Is Bitcoin halal?" to provide insights into Bitcoin-related cultural perspectives in Senegal, a 97% Muslim country. The conference was packed with students and young people.

Nourou shared his vision for Senegal with me. He explained that Senegal would lead West Africa out of the darkness of currency colonialism, and the information about Bitcoin in Africa should also be decentralized.

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 will meet Senegalese; if you go to Mali, you will meet Mali people.

There may be some similarities between different countries, such as shared history and overlapping cultures, but Africa is as diverse as Europe. The event, like Bitcoin, should be decentralized and distributed, allowing every region of Africa to adopt Bitcoin.

Bitcoin in Senegal

During the conference, I also interviewed a merchant accepting Bitcoin payments, the owner of a French expatriate bar. The bar had only recently started accepting Bitcoin. Despite being completely unfamiliar with decentralized currency, the owner, Gary, was pleased to see new customers coming to the bar because of Bitcoin. When I chatted with him face-to-face, I tried to persuade him to accept Bitcoin payments at his other tattoo shop as well.

A tattoo parlor now accepting BTC

Praïnha, managed by surfing coach Renée Laraise, is the first restaurant in the area to accept Bitcoin. Surfing, as one of Senegal's most prominent sports after football, has made him a spokesperson for the community.

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

During my second visit to Senegal, I gifted Bitcoin to over 70 people. The process was simple: I had them download a Lightning wallet, usually the Satoshi wallet, and then they clicked to receive.

The wallets were custodial, meaning they didn't actually hold the keys to the Bitcoin. However, they trusted that the Satoshi wallet wouldn't run off with their funds like Sam Bankman-Fried. For newcomers, this was already a great starting point.

I sent each of them a few thousand satoshis, equivalent to one or two dollars' worth of Bitcoin. I found that distributing BTC in Senegal was easier compared to other countries I had traveled to. People were eager for money and eager to learn. They wanted to save in a currency that couldn't be easily stolen or devalued like the CFA.

I gave away Bitcoin to attendees for free, and the smiles from onlookers indicated that this had become part of the conference entertainment.

I distributed Bitcoin on the beach, on the sidewalks, during the conference, in restaurants and bars, to taxi drivers, and as tips to hotel staff.

Most of the time, I gave Bitcoin to young people, boys and girls over 16, and young men. The average age in the U.S. is about 40, while Senegal's population is very young. If a mobile-native, internet-based currency is given the chance to take off in Africa, it would not be surprising for it to grow rapidly.

After experiencing all this, the idea of a Bitcoin circular economy taking off in Senegal became even more convincing. People want Bitcoin, but there are no exchanges to buy it; 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 in its white paper.

Mobile Payments Meet the Lightning Network

Moreover, mobile payments have been thriving in Africa. The development of mobile payment companies began with M-Pesa's rise in Kenya, followed by a surge of mobile payment companies across Africa, as common as Apple stores in European cities. Today, most Africans own smartphones; they may lack regular electricity or access to clean drinking water, but they have the internet.

If there is no internet, payments can still be made via SMS; you just need to send a credit SMS to send and receive payments like a bank transfer, with the largest mobile payment company being Wave.

The Wave logo is ubiquitous in taxi companies, restaurants, bars, and cafes. It works somewhat like the Lightning Network but is slower, more expensive, and uses local currency.

I tried to find a Wave employee to preach to them about entering the Bitcoin network. While watching the World Cup in a bar, I was fortunate to meet a Wave employee. I immediately had him download a wallet and sent him some Bitcoin. I connected to the bar's WiFi and sent him Bitcoin. He was impressed and said he would come to the conference the next day, but I never saw him again.

There is an interesting story. During an interview with Wave's marketing director, he shared his experience of meeting Satoshi in Senegal and hanging out together.

Your expression when someone says they know Satoshi

Senegal has some young digital natives, Bitcoin leaders, and respected mentors in society. Annual meetings are also being held, and more and more vendors are beginning to accept Bitcoin, as indicated: traditional remittances via mobile phones can also be accepted.

This is the face of Bitcoin in Africa and a way for the African continent to surpass developed countries. So why can't we surpass mobile money through the Lightning Network?