- MARA secures a $23M deal to boost the Sub-Saharan Africa crypto economy
- TQ Ventures, Alameda FTX, and Nexo are major investors in the deal
- MARA to build a range of products that will cater to the needs of the Africans in the crypto economy
MARA, the Pan African-based Exchange platform, has raised $23M. Investors of the project include Coinbase Ventures, FTX, and Distributed Global, who joined hands to pave way for the Crypto economy in the African continent.
With the support of different venture capitalists, MARA will aid in the adoption of cryptocurrency through specialized skills, knowledge, and the acquisition of resources.
With the rise in Web3 developer units and cryptocurrency usage, crypto-exchange platforms like MARA seek to enhance crypto adoption by providing Africans with access to the crypto market.
According to data from Chainalysis, Africa’s crypto adoption grew by 1200% in 2021 making it the third fastest-growing crypto-economy globally.
Major Projects from MARA
MARA promises to build a range of products that will cater to the needs of the African people in the crypto economy. It seeks to start with a pilot project that is a consumer-based brokerage app that allows users to transact both crypto and fiat assets.
The launch date of this pilot project is set for July 2022, both in Kenya and Nigeria. In the 4th quarter of the current financial year, MARA will launch a Blockchain-enabled Alchemy platform that will aid in developing decentralized applications (dApps). This platform will be powered by the MARA token tool kit for Web3 developers.
A pro exchange unit will also be launched in the 1st Quarter of the next financial year to facilitate traditional exchange options on MARA’s native app for traders. MARA CEO, Chi Nnadi assured the African people that the financial infrastructure will enable them to purchase crypto and build their projects and that MARA will act as an incubation centre for the launching of these projects by engineers and Web3 developers.
MARA to spur the African economy in several ways
Based on the social and financial challenges that grip the remote areas in Africa, the Blockchain technology and use of cryptocurrencies will create an opportunity to ensure that project funding and capital are accrued to its targeted beneficiaries. This will do away with middlemen and shell corporations that prey on donor-funded projects.
MARA wants to make an immediate impact on the Sub-Saharan Africa crypto-economy. MARA will be part of the decentralized Web3-based platforms such as Nestcoin and the Coinbase Venture, Jambo, that have been working on the African crypto space for a while. It plans to educate entities such as companies and governments on crypto management, oversight, and financial literacy.
Nnadi adds that the creation of wallets, a trade exchange platform, and financial infrastructure will have a positive impact on the African people. Schuster Tanger, the Co-Founder of TQ Ventures, declared his support by partnering with MARA. He claims that this will pave the way for the design and construction of a digital financial system for the Pan African Crypto economy.
Other Venture Capitalists who invested in the deal are Nexo, Day One Ventures, Infinite Capital, Huobi Ventures, TQ Ventures, and DAO Jones.
Africa catches up on blockchain and crypto adoption projects
MARA is one of the many blockchain projects that are spurring crypto and blockchain adoption in Africa. In recent days, quite a similar project was launched in South Africa. The Xago Xchange Platform launched its XUS stableman. South Africans and Africans at large are expected to leverage the coin to bring about extensive innovations in the crypto space.
In Kenya, the Sankore project, partnered with the Near Foundation, together they plan to establish a blockchain hub. The Hub will focus on providing blockchain and cryptocurrency to society.
The Nestcoin project from Nigeria is another blockchain adoption project that focuses on easing the cryptocurrency world to enable the average African to gain access to many economic opportunities.
