Cryptocurrencies Continue to Gain Traction as Global Economy Shrinks | IT News Africa

The cryptocurrency sector continues to show strong growth despite a severe economic contraction since the global COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, Bitcoin is up 28% and is now trading at $8993.

This could be attributed to the move towards a cashless environment, seeing as though the virus is can be transferred across surfaces, which augurs well for digital money.

According to South Africa’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Luno, record trading volumes were achieved in March and there was a 50% rise in its number of active users month-on-month. Luno has over 3 million users across 40 countries worldwide.

Marius Reitz, GM for Africa at Luno, says, “This indicates continued cryptocurrency investment by existing holders and entirely new investors entering cryptocurrencies for the first time.”

Increased demand

Reitz adds that a recent client survey, undertaken during the pandemic, also highlighted 42% of Luno wallet holders plan to buy…