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Kioneki Profile picture
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23 Aug, 7 tweets, 2 min read
PayPal will now allow its users in the U.K. to buy, sell, and hold Cryptocurrencies starting next week supporting 4 coins: Bitcoin BTC, Ethereum ETH, Lite coin LTC and Bitcoin Cash BCH theblockcrypto.com/post/115284/pa…
This is relevant to East Africa for 2 reasons:

1) Mpesa+PayPal partnership. If Kenya 🇰🇪 allows crypto, this is one avenue for Mpesa to open up Cryptocurrencies to its customer base w/out the hassle of technical implementation
2) this model by PayPal is the model likely followed by African Fintechs when opening up investment/trading products to their customer base for example Chipper cash. I tweeted on it here
3) A third reason perhaps is the possibility of Cryptocurrencies as a payment option for East African online freelancers or merchants or maybe even remittances. USDC w/in PayPal > converted through Mpesa via a gateway partner into Kenya 🇰🇪 shillings
PayPal cld use crypto such as USDC or BTC for connecting prepaid wallets in Africa to the online web through partnerships with MNOs bridged by gateway partners.

It saves MNOs the headache of steep crypto learning curve + managing crypto technicals
Nothing new here

PayPal has made it clear it has a strategy for Africa
PayPal has existing partnerships w/ MNOs
PayPal has existing partnerships with African Fintechs
PayPal has existing partnerships with African Banks
As always, regulation is the biggest downside for a lot of formal crypto possibilities

The upside is as soon as regulations are clear, floodgates open for competition

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More from @pesa_africa

Kioneki Profile picture
14 Sep
Fuel prices going up in Kenya 🇰🇪 is an opportunity for alternative energy products - solar, ethanol, hybrid taxis... you name it!

This crisis is paving way for the business success stories of tomorrow
Severals example from Kenyan Uber drivers

1. more drivers are considering alternatives such as LPG Pro-gas which retails ~50% vs petrol (70kes vs 129kes). Some drivers have modified vehicles to cater for proGas compatible engines
2. Some Uber drivers are now considering hybrid ( electric & fuel) vehicles such as Honda Insight and Toyota Prius

3. Some taxi drivers have shifted to fully electric vehicles for example Nissan Nopia
Read 11 tweets
Kioneki Profile picture
13 Sep
E-commerce in Africa is growing & evolving, however, it’s taking place in different forms & channels; a significant amount of transactions are taking place 'informally' on digital channels such as Instagram, Whatsapp, Facebook, Websites, SMS, Voice calls, etc. Via @AfridigestHQ
“I believe e-commerce is just in its first iteration and I, therefore, hold the view that the question’s assumptions are mistaken. E-commerce is inevitable but its characteristics in Africa will look quite different than that of the US or Asia.”
The lack of e-commerce penetration in Africa is partly due to how it is defined. WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook (including Instagram) sales allow for the more accessible informal market to flourish. This is where many items in Africa are bought and sold
Read 15 tweets
Kioneki Profile picture
13 Sep
Where can i find a list of USSD services offered in Kenya 🇰🇪 or East Africa ? Like a compilation of all public/consumer facing USSD codes such as

- betting
- financial services
- ecommerce
- health
- surveys etc
Im trying to gauge the user experience of USSD across different services...

Any links to research, blogs or articles welcomed
Difference between licensing and issuance of USSD codes in Kenya 🇰🇪 versus Tanzania 🇹🇿 h/t @CGAP
Read 5 tweets
Kioneki Profile picture
24 Aug
It seems Nigeria 🇳🇬 is an entire different market from Kenya 🇰🇪 and East Africa b/c of Telcos/MNO/mobile money led digital financial services in East Africa in the last decade/1
We have always known that Nigeria 🇳🇬 was / is a Bank 🏦 led market, versus Kenya 🇰🇪 East Africa where Telcos unbundled some financial services from Banks since 2007 /2
On this side of the continent, payments already dominated by non-bank players , but the real impact of Telcos led digital finance was spurring banks 🏦 into adapting by opening up digital channels /3
Read 14 tweets
Kioneki Profile picture
23 Aug
⚠️ African Fintech VCs remind me of Crypto Bros, bag holders who will say anything and everything to pump their 💰 bags to the next greater fool.
East Africa FINTECH

Eversend user = Chipper cash user = Mpesa user = Opay user = Tala user = Branch user = X

Let’s at least have an honest conversation about user metrics: unique users, retention, repeat usage before any meaningful valuations
My theory is

- users are finicky/ no loyalty
- banks and MNOs are playing the Fintech game too
- there’s a cap on how much can be extracted from users
- adding more $$ into user wallets is # 1problem
- supposed size of ‘middle class’ is overstated
- Nigeria 🇳🇬 is not Africa
Read 4 tweets
Kioneki Profile picture
12 Aug
The state of Crypto In Africa for startups and business can be summarized in this one chart where REGULATION is the most significant event

Why? Image
Right now (pre regulation) the only models that seem to work are peer to peer marketplace models like Paxful, Binance P2P, localcryptos, Localbitcoins and other startups that have incorporated P2P models
These models work b/c the company, like Paxful, need not have a bank account to intermediate trades. Crypto Trades are between peers and fiat settlement transfers for such are between peers/ individual accounts
Read 10 tweets

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