Egypt’s first bitcoin exchange will go live later this month,
the founders of Bitcoin Egypt said.
The founders linked the Middle East’s most populous country with
a cryptocurrency that has surged in value in recent months.
Many governments around the world are still mulling how to
regulate and classify bitcoin, a volatile digital currency that has
captured the interest of speculative investors worldwide.
Its value has soared,roughly quadrupling since the start of 2017
and trading at around 4,400 dollars on Thursday.
Egypt, most of whose 93 million people have no bank accounts,
but where electronic payments have grown in recent years, lacks
regulations for digital currency.
This means local retailers cannot accept it as payment, but
users on an exchange may be left to trade freely, potentially
cashing in on its ascent.
“We’re still waiting on the Egyptian government to set some kind
of regulations…Without any laws, bitcoin is not legal money in
Egypt,” said Bitcoin Egypt founder Rami Khalil.
He said the exchange has picked up about 300 pre-registrations
from users ahead of its launch.
The Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority, the country’s
financial markets regulator, did not respond to requests for
comment.
Khalil and co-founder Omar Abdelrasoul see their platform
connecting a community of several thousand bitcoin enthusiasts who
will for the first time be able to trade in Egyptian pounds.
The pounds have roughly halved in value since November after
flotation under an International Monetary Fund loan programme.
“Cryptoassets are happening whether (the Egyptian government)
joins in or not. And by not joining they’re missing out on a very
big market.
Currently bitcoin is about a 70 billion dollars market,” said
Khalil.
Cryptocurrencies allow anonymous peer-to-peer transactions
between individual users without the need for banks or central
banks.
Bitcoin’s lack of central authority makes it attractive to those
wanting to get around capital controls.
This has helped it proliferate in China, the world’s most active
bitcoin market, but has led some governments to crack down on its
use to prevent money laundering.
Those same dynamics could propel bitcoin in Egypt, where a
shortage of hard currency after the 2011 uprising sharply,
restricted bank transfers.
Meanwhile, liquidity at banks has improved and capital controls
have been lifted in recent months, businesses still resort to a
black market for dollars to obtain currency not available in the
formal banking system.
“We’re trying to get people used to the idea of bitcoin, to
ready the market so that in a couple of years we will reach a
greater number of users.
“But for now we are trying to let people know what
cryptocurrency is,” said Abdelrasoul.
Egypt’s first bitcoin exchange will go live later this month,
the founders of Bitcoin Egypt said.
The founders linked the Middle East’s most populous country with
a cryptocurrency that has surged in value in recent months.
Many governments around the world are still mulling how to
regulate and classify bitcoin, a volatile digital currency that has
captured the interest of speculative investors worldwide.
Its value has soared,roughly quadrupling since the start of 2017
and trading at around 4,400 dollars on Thursday.
Egypt, most of whose 93 million people have no bank accounts,
but where electronic payments have grown in recent years, lacks
regulations for digital currency.
This means local retailers cannot accept it as payment, but
users on an exchange may be left to trade freely, potentially
cashing in on its ascent.
“We’re still waiting on the Egyptian government to set some kind
of regulations…Without any laws, bitcoin is not legal money in
Egypt,” said Bitcoin Egypt founder Rami Khalil.
He said the exchange has picked up about 300 pre-registrations
from users ahead of its launch.
The Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority, the country’s
financial markets regulator, did not respond to requests for
comment.
Khalil and co-founder Omar Abdelrasoul see their platform
connecting a community of several thousand bitcoin enthusiasts who
will for the first time be able to trade in Egyptian pounds.
The pounds have roughly halved in value since November after
flotation under an International Monetary Fund loan programme.
“Cryptoassets are happening whether (the Egyptian government)
joins in or not. And by not joining they’re missing out on a very
big market.
Currently bitcoin is about a 70 billion dollars market,” said
Khalil.
Cryptocurrencies allow anonymous peer-to-peer transactions
between individual users without the need for banks or central
banks.
Bitcoin’s lack of central authority makes it attractive to those
wanting to get around capital controls.
This has helped it proliferate in China, the world’s most active
bitcoin market, but has led some governments to crack down on its
use to prevent money laundering.
Those same dynamics could propel bitcoin in Egypt, where a
shortage of hard currency after the 2011 uprising sharply,
restricted bank transfers.
Meanwhile, liquidity at banks has improved and capital controls
have been lifted in recent months, businesses still resort to a
black market for dollars to obtain currency not available in the
formal banking system.
“We’re trying to get people used to the idea of bitcoin, to
ready the market so that in a couple of years we will reach a
greater number of users.
“But for now we are trying to let people know what
cryptocurrency is,” said Abdelrasoul.
Read more https://nairalaw.com/egypt-begins-bitcoin-trading/