In an effort to encourage the adoption of Web3 in Africa, Celo has collaborated with Opera. The layer 1 blockchain network in a post on X today confirmed the collaboration. As revealed, the collaborative effort of the two partners will birth the launching of a stablecoin wallet identified as a Minipay.
More so, in the post, Celo revealed that the stablecoin wallet will enjoy infrastructural backing from its layer 1 network. Further, the firm stated that the development of the wallet is aimed at onboarding more people from Africa into the Web3 landscape. In addition, the launching of the wallet will first take place in the most populous country in the region; Nigeria.
The state of the crypto industry in Nigeria
It is worth mentioning that virtual assets have found their feet in Nigeria despite a tougher stance against the industry in previous years. The adoption of virtual assets in the country gained more ground in 2020 before an eventual ban. Despite the ban, crypto firms like Binance and Celo continue to interact with virtual assets enthusiasts through promotional and educational means.
In February 2022, after the ban on cryptocurrency, Binance sponsored a major television series franchise in the country; the Nigerian Idol. Through the deal, the world’s largest crypto exchange emerged as the official cryptocurrency and blockchain partner of the show. On May 16, 2022, the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission released its regulatory framework for cryptocurrency. According to a Binbits report, the Nigerian SEC labeled all virtual assets as securities.
Further, the regulation provided requirements exchanges must meet before venturing into the country to operate. The establishment of the regulatory framework provided crypto firms like Moonpay and Metamask to introduce innovative solutions in Nigeria. Now, Celo has followed suit with the introduction of the Minipay. As revealed, the stablecoin wallet will help facilitate virtual assets transactions by charging low fees.
How Celo has contributed to the global adoption of cryptocurrency
The layer 1 network in recent times has emerged as one of the foremost crusaders for the global adoption of cryptocurrency. In January 2022, the network launched cReal, a stablecoin pegged to the Brazilian local currency. Like Minipay, Celo with the initiative intended to encourage the global adoption of virtual assets.
Thereafter, in May 2023, Celo partnered with Alchemy Pay to facilitate access to its native token, $CELO. The collaboration will help facilitate the availability of the native token on Alchemy Pay for purchase. Ever since the token has enjoyed more accessibility and adoption. According to Coinmarketcap, $CELO as of press time is trading at $0.4209.