₦airaland Forum

The first cryptocurrency, which is now the most valuable cryptocurrency was birthed in 2009. Ever since, cryptocurrency has not only become the reason we see global finance differently today, it has also become a target for both criticism and adoration from all directions in the world today. A larger chunk of the criticisms has come from central banks/government institutions around the world.

Like fiat currencies, cryptocurrencies were made into existence with the purpose of being a medium of exchange in transactions. However, cryptocurrency, as long as benefits are a concern, is a notch further and better compared to the fiat currencies issued and controlled by central banks, because it has unique qualities fiat currencies lack. Also, just like any other medium of exchange, cryptocurrencies do have their disadvantages, but are the benefits worth it?

In today’s article, the pros and cons of cryptocurrency will be broken down into simple terms so that you are equipped with the knowledge of what this technology and medium of exchange is all about.

Decentralization

When cryptocurrencies are talked about, one of the basic and fundamental features of this medium of exchange is decentralization. A unique quality which simply means it is not issued, owned, controlled or monitored by any financial institution or central bank (government). Such quality makes it impossible for its price value to be influenced by government decisions or interventions.

Cryptocurrency based transactions are made possible through nodes (a global network of computers) on a virtual existence, unlike fiat currencies which are sourced physically from central banks. To simply put: cryptocurrency cannot be controlled by governments and its institutions, only actual owners can, and that is the beauty of decentralization of cryptocurrency.

Records are permanent

The bane of fiat currencies is that it is prone to manipulation, especially in countries where corruption is rife. For fiat currencies, records can be manipulated by institutions, but this is impossible for cryptocurrencies due to blockchain technology. In a simple definition, blockchain is a ledger system for cryptocurrencies, an online recording mechanism and a fundamental technology of the system. Every cryptocurrency transaction made has its record permanently stored on the blockchain! With the help of cryptography, these transactions are encrypted and impossible to manipulate by any entity, unlike fiat currencies. This only means one thing, and that is, reliability and accountability.

Transparent transactions

Unlike fiat currencies issued by central banks, transactions that were made with the use of cryptocurrency can be seen/viewed by anyone around the world at any time. All you need to do is getting the particular transaction address on the internet with the use of ‘blockchain explorers.’

High price volatility

The unstable nature of cryptocurrency has been one of the criticisms it has faced since inception of the technology. The price of cryptocurrencies can double in a very short amount of time, as well as losing its value by half its initial price. For such reason, it makes it difficult to predict its projections. With such volatility, it means one can lose a lot in a short period, while also gaining a lot of profit in a short period. For this reason, institutions around the world are wary about adopting cryptocurrency.

It is a scarce asset

Yes, they are scarce assets! Central banks can print as much as they can to manipulate currencies, but cryptocurrencies are mined by individuals and poured into circulation. For example, 88% of bitcoin has already been mined and with only 22 million BTC in existence, it only means bitcoin is in limited supply. Once it is completely mined, it will only continue to grow in value when you consider how demand and supply works, especially for a limited commodity.

With such characteristics, fiat currency will soon become an outdated medium of exchange in transactions. Cryptocurrency cannot be controlled by any entity, and governments around the world do not like what they cannot control, and this has been enough reason for some countries to ban this technology. However, this has not stopped what many consider as a movement against the shackles of financial centralization!

Source: https://gigabyts.com/2021/02/12/cryptocurrency-why-your-financial-institutions-hate-it/


cc lalasticlala dominique, FOD, naijacutee, puskin

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CandyOps:
Nigeria has SON and other bodies meant to ensure quality control and standards are met.

But then just like NAFDAC and every other thing in Nigeria, you can always have your way when you have good conversation skills and a little crispy Naira notesbin your wallet.

Just smile make some jokes, know when to dip your hands into your pocket and things should be pretty groovy

SON is a weak institution and lacks the necessary equipments and personnel for testing these components and softwares. All you have to do is grease their palms and your products will pass. The system is broken and needs a massive change.

WoundedLamb:
Hhmm... Nice write-up, OP! Here's my input.

I think the products Africans consume are a reflection of thier economy. You just can't enjoy what you can't afford. Those phones you consider low quality are the reason why an average Nigerian can afford to stay connected today. Otherwise, the use of mobile devices would have still been a thing for the rich alone in Africa.

I think the regulatory bodies check for compliance to national policy (energy efficiency regulations, labeling requirements, radiocommunication acts, etc.) and not necessarily quality in terms of performance. A fully compliant device might still have low quality and the regulatory bodies would still let it pass if there's demand for it. Asides from medical equipment, I don't think it's the duty of a regulatory body to sieve out products based on perfomace because technology is usually scaled out. This means the lower the quality, the lower the price. People are therefore given the chance to make their choices. In other words, a good deal of the phones sold in Africa could still pass the regulatory requirements in the US. But would they be successful in the market? The answer is no. This is because the devices are specifically scaled to fit the African market. In other words, the quality/price relationship is adjusted to meet the purchasing power of an average African. If the phones are imported into Canada for example, it would die a natural death cause an average Canadian can afford an iPhone given the minimum wage factor.

So many of these devices you criticize were designed to cater for the low income earners (majority of which are in Africa). And each would naturally disappear the moment the average African's purchasing power goes above its offerings (at the individual level, you naturally go for a better phone when your earning goes up). It would, therefore, be a brute force economic policy to attempt to sieve them out when your people can't afford the high quality ones.

Thanks for sharing.

I stopped reading halfway because you totally missed the point. Techno and the likes has no market in the USA or any western country because components are not up to standard and are not safe for use. I didn’t want to call names so readers won’t see me as bias. Imagine a last year report showed Chinese smartphones shipped phones with malware to Africa. Would that have passed in developed countries? That would been the end of such manufacturers.

I agree with your first paragraph. You can’t give what you don’t have.

masterfactor:
CHEAP THINGS SELLS IN AFRICA

A bad economy is a breeding ground for such markets.

Cc lalasticlala honsule puskin

Before the days of low-quality Chinese feature phones and the emergence of android, only brand new and used (mostly stolen) quality mobile devices shipped down to Africa. Nokia and blackberry dominated Africa markets as they did throughout the world, albeit with expensive price tags. The expensive price tags meant people who couldn’t afford these devices didn’t have these devices at all.

The emergence of android meant both of these manufactures closed shop. In the emergence of android, Nokia went the Microsoft way, while on the other hand, RIM (Research in Motion) arrogantly stayed with its doomed-to-fail blackberry OS. Android is known and meant to run on basically almost anything, and this meant anything cheap too. Being open source (which simply meant anyone could freely use it without paying a dime in royalty or licensing) meant every Tom, Dick, and Harry could put android OS on their devices.

Having read what looks like a bit of a back story in the beginning of this article, in the next few paragraphs, you’ll be knowing three reasons why Africans will keep purchasing terrible low-budget devices!

Lack of regulatory bodies

One of the reasons why low-quality consumer electronics keep flooding the African market is lack of institutions required to regulate products that enters the market. The picture below shows the regulatory body of countries with strong institutions which regulates consumer electronics that enters their territory. When you look closely, you will find signs of regulatory institutions from the US, Canada, Europe, Brazil, Costa Rica, Argentina, Columbia, and Mexico.


The signs of these regulatory bodies are embedded in every device found in these countries. The sample picture in this article is that of an iPhone. To find that of your device manufacturer, look into your device settings. If you can’t find these regulatory certifications, this only means your device didn’t pass the certification tests and not fit for use. Many of these devices are found in Africa!

All-round bad economy

Many things can be linked to a bad economy, and low-quality products flooding a market is one of many. Across Africa, standard of living is low, same as purchasing power of currencies, and without doubt, these are also linked to bad economies. When the standard of living in a country is low, it simply means the habitants are poor and can barely afford necessities. For majority of Africans to be able to afford smartphones, these devices have to be dirt cheap, and this is another reason why sales of low-quality consumer electronics has continued to thrive in Africa.

Lack of education and ignorance

Africa is regularly referred to as the rich continent habiting the poorest (not literally in the context of this article). A lot of people have poor minds. Easily swayed by cheap promotions without knowing the contents of what they are getting. Some certain smartphone manufacturers who ship down cheap smartphones to African countries have continued to use the same cheap components year-in year-out in different casings. The lack of education and a problem of ignorance has ensured this continues and African consumers are unable to ask for better.

Technology is advancing, developed countries have continued to enjoy the benefits, but can we say the same for Africa?

Source: https://gigabyts.com/?p=56

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