VenturesNow

Akon to release cryptocurrency, build ‘crypto city’ in Senegal

Published

6 years ago

June 22, 2018

Akon, the Senegalese top act, is toying with ideas that could shake the country’s financial system. He says he’s planning to release a new cryptocurrency named after himself – called Akoin.

Speaking at the Cannes Lions Festival on Monday, the Locked Up singer said he believed cryptocurrency could be “the saviour of Africa”.

AKoin’s official website says the singer wants the app “on every mobile phone” between now and December.
And Akon says he’s also planning to build a “crypto city” in Senegal which he calls “a real-life Wakanda”.

AKoin’s offical website details the plans for the new currency
Just like the fictional land of Wakanda in Marvel’s Black Panther, Akon promises says his city will be a “futuristic environment”.

The website says Akon has been “gifted” 2,000 acres of land by the President of Senegal to build the city – which is also named after himself.

Akon Crypto City will apparently be “a short drive” from Dakar, the capital of Senegal.

He calls it “the first 100% crypto-based city with AKoin at the centre of transactional life”.

Under the “Akoin Ecosystem”, consumers will be able to buy, hold and spend cryptocurrency straight from their smartphones.

“It brings the power back to the people and brings the security back into the currency system,” Akon explained.

“It also allows the people to utilise it in ways where they can advance themselves and not allow government to do those things that are keeping them down.”

However, Akon admitted he didn’t know all the technical aspects of his new venture.

“I come with the concepts and let the geeks figure it out,” he said.

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VenturesNow

Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery exports first fuel to Cameroon

Published

2 days ago

December 12, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

The Dangote Refinery in Nigeria said on Wednesday that it had exported its first petrol to Cameroon, marking a significant milestone that may help stabilise gasoline costs throughout the region and open the door for regional energy integration.

When fully operational, Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote’s 650,000-barrel refinery in Lagos is intended to alter the trade of refined products in the Atlantic basin and compete with refineries in Europe.

According to a statement by Neptune Oil, an energy company based in Cameroon, both businesses were looking into new projects to create a dependable supply chain that would assist in stabilising fuel costs and opportunities throughout the area.

According to Neptune Oil, there were no middlemen involved in the petrol delivery deal.

It is anticipated that the refinery’s operations will spur growth in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, increasing investments in cement manufacture, plastic and rubber production, chemical and pharmaceutical goods, and oil refining.

VenturesNow

Egypt’s November inflation drops to 25.5%, near 2-year low

Published

3 days ago

December 11, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to figures released Tuesday by statistics agency CAPMAS, Egypt’s annual urban consumer price inflation rate fell more than anticipated to 25.5% in November, the lowest level since December 2022.

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which caused international investors to pull billions of dollars out of Egyptian treasury markets, inflation started to rise sharply in early 2022.

In September 2023, headline inflation reached a record high of 38.0%. It dropped to 26.5% by October 2024.

In a Reuters survey last month, 15 economists’ consensus prediction was for annual inflation to gradually decline to 26.4%.

According to CAPMAS statistics, headline inflation decreased from 1.1% in October to 0.5% in November every month.

Compared to October, when they fell 1.1%, food costs fell 2.8% over the month, making them 23.3% more than they were a year ago.

An increase in the money supply has been a major contributor to inflation. According to central bank data, Egypt’s M2 money supply increased by 29.54% in October compared to the same month last year.