The central bank of Malawi announced that crypto is not legal in the country and that the institution is against crypto-related activities, local news agency Nyasa Times reports on May 27. The Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) has stated that cryptocurrencies are not legal tender in Malawi and do not represent a substitute to the Malawi kwacha (MWK), the local fiat currency of the southeast African country. The bank has warned its citizens that the government is not planning to recognize investments in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin (BTC), according to a statement from RBM Governor Dalitso Kabambe on Monday. The …

The African Digital Asset Framework (ADAF) — a project that aims to establish compliance-focused, cross-border blockchain standards for the African continent — published the first version of its guidance for initial coin offerings (ICO) on March 25. ADAF is supported by the African Digital Asset Foundation (which shares the same acronym) — a non-profit organization and open-source project founded in November 2018, which aims to encourage self-regulation and foster the establishment of legal and technical standards that would support digital trade between the African continent and the diaspora. According to an official blog post accompanying the new standard, entitled “Consumer …

The charity arm of the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, has launched its pilot blockchain-based lunch program in African schools, according to a blog post on Feb. 21. Binance Charity Foundation (BCF) has rolled out its charity campaign “Lunch for Children” in the capital of Uganda, Kampala. According to the program, the organization is set to provide two meals a day during the full year of 2019 to more than 200 students and school staff. The recently launched pilot in Uganda is a part of a larger campaign by Binance that intends to benefit one million students in schools across …

A collaborative IBM project using blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT) to tackle drought is underway in the United States state of California, according to a press release published Feb. 8. IBM Research and sensor tech provider SweetSense have reportedly partnered with non-profit organization The Freshwater Trust (TFT) and the University of Colorado Boulder to use blockchain and IoT technology to sustainably manage groundwater use in what they describe as “one of the largest and most at risk aquifers in North America” — located in northern California's Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing …

A site enabling consumers to buy Bitcoin using hundreds of different payment methods says demand is thriving despite declining cryptocurrency prices — with Africa being its biggest market. Paxful says the volume of transactions it has processed from the continent has risen by more than 130 percent — and now, an average of 17,351 trades per day are being made by its users in Africa. As well as enabling consumers to buy crypto using debit cards and platforms such as PayPal, the company has carved a niche in the market by allowing users to exchange gift cards and vouchers for …

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has issued a consultation paper assessing the benefits and risks of cryptocurrencies. The paper, developed jointly with a number of the country’s government agencies, was announced in an official statement published Jan. 16. In the document, titled “Consultation Paper on Policy Proposals for Crypto Assets,” South Africa’s government clarifies that it does not intend to ban either cryptocurrency trading, or crypto payments at the moment. The consultation paper further proposes that all crypto asset trading platforms, as well as custodial services, payment service providers, and crypto ATMs, should be required to register with the …

Global technology giant IBM will use its blockchain platform to monitor and trace supplies of cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the company confirmed in a press release on Jan. 15. IBM, which has already used the in-house IBM Blockchain platform built on the Hyperledger Fabric in multiple use case environments, will now target the rapidly expanding supplies of cobalt needed for electric cars and consumer devices. The scheme will run in tandem with motor company Ford, South Korean cathode maker LG Chem and China’s Huayou Cobalt. RCS Global, a multinational responsible sourcing company, will also monitor the proceedings. …

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) will reportedly partner with blockchain-based telemedicine and telepsychology firm doc.com to expand free basic healthcare services across Eastern Africa. News of the partnership was shared with Cointelegraph in an email on Dec. 26. In an officially sealed letter signed on Dec. 20 by Amado Philip de Andres, Regional Representative for UNODC’s Regional Office for Eastern Africa (ROEA), de Andres wrote that the organization is “willing to cooperate [...] in a new partnership.” Doc.com is a tech firm that offers blockchain-based 24/7 telemedicine and telepsychology platforms, allowing users to tokenize their personal …

Germany’s major state-owned bank KfW and Burkina Faso’s Ministry of Finance will test a blockchain application for use in public financial management, according to a statement posted Monday, Dec. 17. KfQ, ranked in 2017 as the country’s third largest bank by total assets, had also previously signed an agreement with the Burkinabe government in June 2018, providing the country with a credit of €7 million ($7.9 million) to finance water supply and sanitation areas. According to the recent blockchain-related announcement, TruBudget, an open source app developed by KfW, will be tested in Burkina Faso, Africa within the next six months …

IBM Research has teamed up with United States-based agriculture tech firm Hello Tractor to boost the African agriculture industry with blockchain. The partnership was described in a Dec. 11 blog post on IBM’s official website. According to the post, the IBM Research division in Kenya is working with Hello Tractor’s developers in order to apply various tools and technologies, including blockchain, to the Hello Tractor mobile platform that enables farmers to access tractor services on demand. Specifically, IBM Research scientists will incorporate blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to Hello Tractor’s tool platform. IBM Research also intends to …

The Union Bank of Nigeria has reportedly cautioned against transactions in cryptocurrencies, according to a letter allegedly sent to its users and published Nov. 26 by Nairaland, an online community targeted at Nigerians. Nairaland, the largest Nigerian online community with over 55 million Internet users, has published a letter reportedly from the Union Bank, which cited the Central Bank of Nigeria “advising that cryptocurrency is not a legal tender in Nigeria and has cautioned against transacting in them.” It also states: “In order to guarantee the security of our customers’ funds, Union Bank will monitor accounts being used for cryptocurrency …

Japanese insurance company Sompo has partnered with pan-African digital payment platform BTC Africa, also known as BitPesa, according to Sompo’s press release published Nov. 9. As Cointelegraph Japan has confirmed, Sompo Holdings Inc. invested 570 million yen ($5 million) Nov. 8 to acquire a 10 percent stake in BitPesa. BitPesa is anAfrican Bitcoin (BTC) startup that was founded in 2013, with an initial focus on crypto-enabled fiat remittances between the U.K. and Kenya. In a statement accompanying the investment, Sompo outlined that the partnership is focused on the “digitalization of global remittance services,” and that: "Using BitPesa's technology, developed through …