Bitcoin and blockchain technology are terminologies that were hardly known to Africans before 2013. A few techies had played around with the initial versions of the Bitcoin client application released in 2009, and later in 2010 mined a couple of blocks before losing interest. They eventually probably lost their private keys after formatting their hard drives. The concept seemed interesting as most of them had probably written a “Bank Account” application in C, C++ or Java programming languages with basic deposit, withdraw and display balance functions. Bitcoin then, had little or no value and people were buying pizza for 10,000 Bitcoins.

The network software that is Bitcoin has been largely been misunderstood. If you mention the term Bitcoin to the average middle class Kenyan for instance, the first response you’re likely to get is “Have you invested?”, either that or a frown from someone who invested their money and haven't got their ROI yet or lost their funds in a ponzi scheme. This is because in 2017 when the unit price of Bitcoin skyrocketed, some techies who had somehow managed to hold on to their Bitcoins sold their stash and made some money. There were no guidelines on reporting such revenue. Much of what happened between 2014 and 2017 created an interest that was driven by profit. It is possible that some of those who invested in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies after the 2017 boom knew nothing about the underlying technology.

The fact that the value of Bitcoin had risen and those who acquired it at a low price can now sell it at a higher price and make money, is not the reason Bitcoin was created. It may explain the growth and interest in the space, but it doesn’t explain the solution to the problem it was set out to fix.

If you meet any Bitcoin enthusiast today, who’s offering to invest your money in “blockchain technology” and have you reap unbelievable returns on your investment, ask them this, “What exactly was the Bitcoin blockchain built for?”. If they focus on “profit” then they probably don’t know what they are on about.



