ICE3X, a cryptocurrency exchange based in South Africa has announced direct Naira Ethereum trading. This means customers will no longer have to convert their local currency to bitcoin before buying ethereum.
The nuggets:
- The Naira to Ethereum direct trade is the first in the country.
- The exchange will be launching an improved trading platform for Nigeria.
- Customers will not be charged for depositing into their accounts.
- Ice3x has partnered with Voguepay a payment processor to curtail the risk of fraud for Naira payments.
About ICE3X
Ice3x operates from South Africa, United Kingdom and Nigeria. The company has been in operation since 2013.
Ethereum
Ethereum is the second most popular cryptocurrency after bitcoin. Unlike bitcoin, ethereum is not just a digital currency, but also runs a system whereby its tokens or units of currency can represent shares or units of voting between people. Ether as it is commonly known is also a common currency used to raise funds by start ups in the cryptocurrency space.
Here is an excerpt of the press release.
As the founder of ICE3X, Gareth Grobler’s confidence is still rock solid on the Exchange’s one-of-a-kind solution to bring versatility and multiple currencies to Africa’s bitcoin exchange market. This is especially relevant to those traders that also want to trade in Ether currency. “The two-year old system has picked up backing from both tech geeks and big corporate names like JPMorgan Chase and Microsoft, which are excited about Ethereum’s goal of providing not only a digital currency but also a new type of global computing network, which generally requires Ether to use.”
Furthermore, ICE3X has partnered with Vogue Pay, Africa’s biggest payment processor, to give local currencies like the Naira access to crypto coins. This partnership’s drive is in support of especially online retailers still desperately trying to combat credit card fraud in Nigeria.
Like so many Africans with a passion to see the continent rise from its current financial status, Geoffrey Weli Wosu, Marketing Director of VoguePay, feels that there is no question towards the critical importance of alternative trading options.
“As a payment processing company, we saw the future in Blockchain technology and the importance to partner with a company that can help us satisfy the inquiries from our customers towards innovation in this area. This is needed in our market. So, instead of going abroad to London (for instance), we decided to go with an African company like ICE3X to keep the deal in Africa.”
For those new to crypto currencies, there are (as can be expected) a large number of sources that can help make sense of this upgrade to traditional ways of paying for goods. A good start it to look at Bitcoin School on ICE3X’s site, that offers an insight on topics ranging from “What is a Bitcoin Exchange Provider?” to “Bitcoin vs Cash”.
“We are thrilled to be a part of an innovative way in trading. What matters most, is that we want to make available a platform where traders can exchange crypto currencies with confidence”, says Gareth Grobler.
