The world’s most popular crypto, Bitcoin, has printed gains of more than 833% in the past year, as investors troop in with bullish momentum, pushing the coin’s value near a $60,000 price level.
The flagship crypto, at the time of writing, is trading at $58,885.09 (approximately N28,264,843 at the exchange rate of N480 to $1). This amount would comfortably buy a Unit of 3-bedroom apartments in Abraham Adesanya Estate, Ajah Lagos, according to Propertypro.ng, a top real estate listing website in Nigeria.
This adds credence to why the level of interest in Bitcoin on Google search engine is higher in Nigeria than in any other part of the world. A significant number of Nigerian millennials use the flagship crypto-asset to preserve their wealth and save themselves from the long and arduous bureaucratic processes associated with opening a Nigerian investment account.
READ: Bitcoin produces 4 billionaires worth at least $3 billion each
Buying property with Bitcoin is fast gaining traction particularly in developed markets because transactions are done quicker than property purchases with fiat currencies; as there is no need for additional fees or intermediaries common with other means of payments like cash, and there are no transaction limits such as the daily transfers limits imposed by Nigerian Banks.
A growing number of individuals with meaningful Bitcoin assets often prefer to diversify their Crypto holdings to less risky and tangible assets like real estate.
In addition, Jesse Powell, the leader of Europe’s most powerful Crypto exchange, when responding to questions on Bloomberg said, “I think I said Bitcoin is going to infinity and that’s kind of hard to comprehend because I’m measuring it in terms of dollars.”
The highly respected Crypto leader also spoke on the futuristic price of the world’s most popular crypto:
“To the crypto community, I think those kinds of assets are easier to measure Bitcoin against because you never know where the dollar is going to be. There could be 10 times as many U.S. dollars out there a year from now, so it’s really hard to measure Bitcoin against the dollar.”
READ: Bill Gates says he doesn’t own Bitcoin, remains neutral about crypto
When Lambo? Probably by the end of the year, says @jespow.
The CEO and founder of #cryptocurrency exchange Kraken speaks to @emilychangtv and @sonalibasak on how high he thinks #Bitcoin can go https://t.co/yfkGwDPMBy
More on @crypto: https://t.co/NLRE84Up5T pic.twitter.com/55ya7epGtu
— Bloomberg Crypto (@crypto) March 31, 2021
READ: Number of Bitcoin millionaires worth at least $5.7 million hit one month low
Bottom line: The record gains posted by the world’s most popular crypto asset has surely endeared it to a growing number of Nigerians, particularly those seeking investment opportunities that preserve their earnings and hedge against Nigeria’s current galloping inflation.
Crypto pundits are, therefore, not surprised that Africa’s biggest and arguably most important crypto market is not giving up on bitcoin and is thus, ready to pay a premium to hold on to the asset, irrespective of the Central Bank’s ban.