I moved from Singapore to the United States in December 2015. In January 2016, two professional colleagues, who are now my personal friends working for the Banking Industry then, approached me and floated the ideas of learning about cryptocurrencies. They were willing to share the knowledge pertaining to cryptocurrencies. They offered to show me for free how they were able to “deal in cryptocurrencies”, make profits and use the same profits to pay for their day-to-day needs, requirements and bill obligations.
The Zambian (aka Zamunda) and the African (aka Wakanda) risk averse instincts implanted in me by societal background expectations and upbringing in Africa intuitively urged me to start giving lame excuses, “silently reject”, or politely decline the offer of the skill sets, experience and knowledge required to succeed with cryptocurrencies.
That inner voice which whispers and strongly urges everyone not to venture into the world of the unknown, telling you to stay put in your comfort zone and not to take the uncalculated risks lest you lose and become a laughing stock among clan members, family and friends engulfed me. That inner voice became very strong and passively instructed the entire me to dismiss the “fake, science fiction like stories” of how people can make money using digital currencies (the unseen and the untouchable money – how do I even explain to my grandparents born in in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s of what type of money that is if one could not touch it and put it in your own pocket).
Like many of our generation, the first reaction was “if it is true, they are making the money, why can’t they just make money “silently” and enjoy it themselves instead of wasting their time and energy telling others and disclosing the secret formulae of success to strangers or people they barely know very well?’. That African mentality of “if you are making money, do not tell others how you are making money, keep quiet and make your money alone and in peace without disclosing the means and process”.
The next thought with many of us hailing from Africa has always been, “show me the money”, ” where is the money you have made so far and how much money have you made so far”. This could explain the reason why “NETWORK Online Marketing with referral links and codes” have taken long to be greatly appreciated and take off on the African Continent. Other Countries have to wait for Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya and other risk takers like Zimbabwe, Senegal and Mali to be bruised first or succeed before other Central African Countries can join the fray, the frenzy and excitement of joining the new trends and investment opportunities especially in the cryptocurrency world. It is a wait and see mentality.
As Zambians, we are used to seeing people who have made money, buy new and expensive shoes, clothes, buy new, big and expensive vehicles and build or buy bigger houses and big farmland. We are yet to come with terms to appreciate the Warren Buffet stories of same old vehicle and same old house. We question why someone would make so much money and yet does not spend it, show it off only to donate to Foundations and Charity in far flung areas as a Philanthropist. Indeed, that is the African mind mainly from Zamunda and Wakanda (aka Zambia and Africa respectively).
To my African brothers and sisters. Now, listen, there are currently over 10,000 Cryptocurrencies in the World. And some more are coming and are being listed on International Exchanges and in Wallets. We need to take keen interest and leverage how we can also make money like many others are doing globally on all Continents. Never be too shy, too lazy and too old to learn new things.
Companies like Facebook, Libra, Diem Association will soon come up with the DIEM. PetronPay came up with its own Token known as the Peron Security “S” Token. RailCycler came up with its own Cryptocurrency token known as RailWay (AIL) built on top of the TRON Platform. D.AI.SY will soon launch its own DAISY Token in July 2021, the GSP has come up with its own G999 token. The BitLocity, Argentas, the PI and the Quahl have plans to launch their own respective Tokens in the not so distance future.
The Akoin cryptocurrency, created by famous singer and philanthropist Akon – whose real name is Alioune Badara Thiam with a mission to build a futuristic $6billion Akon City in Senegal, which he calls a “real life Wakanda” was launched in Kenya recently. The Token may may take long before it can go to the moon.
Africa has an AFRO Cryptocurrency by a Switzerland based NGO. It surely needs a lot of polishing-up. The ODUWA Coin (OWC) co-founded by Mr. Bright Enabulele was being introduced as a Pan-African Digital Currency by ADDI Founder/CEO of H.E. Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao this 2021. Buy the ODUWA and hold for a while.
We ALL need to realize and perhaps greatly appreciate that the meteoric increase in the value of BITCOIN (hovering around $30k and $40k per 1 Bitcoin currently has positioned many cryptocurrencies at the forefront of investors’ attention and intention. We just all wish we bought even 1 or 2 bitcoins in 2010.
We Africans from Zamunda and Wakanda can no longer just ignore this new normal and sit on our laurels. We just need to embrace the Digital currencies, stand up and be counted. Let us ALL embrace this new knowledge and take keen interest in the cryptocurrency, how you can buy, how to store, how to trade, how you can swap, hold, stake, arbitrage, sell cryptocurrency and potentially make profits by managing your risk appetite. Stay safe
