Fiat-to-crypto trading is now live on the Uganda-facing division of the hugely successful trading platform Binance.

As part of a wider commitment to encouraging blockchain being used for charitable causes, its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, announced that his exchange would donate $500,000 to local causes through the firm’s charitable wing.

Binance Execs Spy Big Opportunities in Uganda and Beyond

After successfully launching the necessary prerequisites to roll out full fiat-to-crypto trading support last week, the Ugandan wing of the Binance digital asset trading platform made good on an earlier promise to deliver the much-anticipated service.

The exchange will now allow citizens of the East African nation to use their native currency, the Ugandan shilling, to buy some of the assets offered by Binance. For now, it appears the list is limited to just Bitcoin and Ether.

During a blog post on Medium earlier today, Binance Uganda stated:

“We thank you all for your support and encouragement during the past few days. This is a first step into expanding the cryptocurrency exchange markets for a more inclusive ecosystem that will involve fiat currencies.”

The exchange went on to praise Uganda for its progressive stance towards the technological and financial innovation of cryptocurrency. Noted were the many conferences and meetups organised by the large number of pro-crypto groups in the nation, which serve to promote the tech in both Uganda and the wider continent of Africa.

Binance clearly sees great potential in the continent in the coming years. Benjamin Rameau, director of the exchange’s research division, stated earlier this year:

“… the investment opportunity in Africa today is similar to that of Asia in the 1960s, before the region’s economic miracles emerged.”

Following this comparison, Binance Uganda stated that it is committed to exploring opportunities to promote blockchain in Africa as a way to not only increase investment on the continent, but also to explore alternate monetary systems capable of addressing “the gaps in the region’s existing systems.”

The Medium post then focuses on Binance’s charitable wing and the work it is doing in Africa. Blockchain Charity Foundation (BCF) as it is known is headed by Helen Hai – herself experienced as a UNIDO Goodwill Ambassador for Industrialisation on the continent. Hai commented that blockchain had the potential to help her to “empower the bottom billion people in this world.”

Finally, as a symbol to his company’s commitment to Uganda and the wider continent of Africa, Zhao today also announced a sizeable donation to local charity causes. Speaking at the UNCTAD World Investment Forum being held in Geneva, the executive stated that the company would gift an impressive $500,000 through the exchange’s Blockchain Charity Foundation.

Featured image from Shutterstock.