• In 2021, Paxful had a total transaction volume of $3 billion, and Nigeria accounted for $760 million
• Ray Youssef stated that the crypto winter caused heavy changes within its internal structure.
• In 2021 Paxful established the PaxNaija Education Centre to empower Nigerians through Bitcoin education.

Africa’s crypto industry has received another blow while trying to survive the ongoing crypto winter. Paxful, an Africa-focused crypto firm, announces its impending closure. Many within the industry are shocked as the rate of digital asset adoption steadily recovers from the FTX crises. Unfortunately, this sudden turn of events has left many stranded. The organization urges its users to withdraw their funds before they finally close the curtains on their operations.

Steady Journey of Paxful crypto exchange.

Within the past decade, digital asset adoption in Africa sky-rocketed. The amount of trading volume that Africa produced was note-worthy, especially since only a handful of countries actively participated. Soon enough, big leagues such as Binance and Ethereum caught wind of Afica’s crypto industry’s vast potential.

Also, Read The Africa Startup League, an opportunity at greatness.

Many set out to provide the necessary support the industry required. From then, various enterprenuers and innovators set their eyes on establishing their exchanges within the thriving ecosystem. Such a line of thinking inspired Ray Youssef to start one of the fastest-growing Africa-focused crypto firms, Paxful.

In 2015, Ray established Pacful to empower the banked and unbanked people of the world. Initially, the organization was a peer-to-peer online marketplace allowing users to transact freely with cryptocurrency. Later on, Ray also took note of the growing need for digital assets within Africa and soon after focused most of the organization’s efforts toward empowering the familiar African native.

In an interview at CoinDesk, Ray stated that Africa is the hub for blockchain technology and crypto. He further claimed that the continents hold the highest number of searches on Google about cryptocurrency. Furthermore, he contended that Africa’s transaction volume represents a small fraction of the continent’s capabilities. The Africa-focused crypto firm has generated quite an audience in Africa, especially in leading crypto countries such as Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.

Aside from creating significant relations with various African countries, the organization has also established essential educational projects n crypto. In 2021 Paxful established the PaxNaija Education Centre to empower Nigerians through Bictiin education. In addition, the AFrica-focused crypto firm has hosted several camps, tours, and workshops.

These have encouraged innovators and entrepreneurs to dive into the blockchain world and its applications. Within the same year, it donated to the Human Rights Foundation to fund the Qala Fellowship. This program aims to find and grow local African talent, starting with developers to support and help them build careers in the Bitcoin space. 

Also, Read Upcoming crypto winter: How will it affect Africa’s crypto ecosystem.

Paxful crypto exchange has supported Africa by establishing trustworthy systems and educational centres and supporting innovators’ growth.

The end of Paxful crypto exchange

The beginning of 2023 was a dark age for Africa’s crypto exchange, with its digital asset adoption at an all-time low. The consequences of the crypto winter hit African traders hard, and various organizations were severely affected. Unfortunately, Paxful crypto exchange was among the few who could not survive the severe crypt winter.

Upon its announcement, Ray Youssef stated that the crypto winter caused heavy changes within its internal structure. He claimed that staff departure and the regulation environment caused by the FTX crash were the primary reasons behind the sudden decisions. He wrote that users should prepare for the complete dissolvent of the Africa-focused crypto firm.

Fortunately, Paxful has maintained its reputation to the bitter end, as Ray has claimed the company has accounted for all customer funds. Users should withdraw their funds before they partially shut down their systems. As a show of goodwill and in line with their vision of promoting Africa’s crypto Industry Paxful linked several platforms that would easily cater t their non-US users.

The mass panic over the FTX crash was the perfect excuse various governments needed to tighten the leash on crypto traders. As a result, several industries had to comply with legal claims and lawsuits. Unfortunately, the Paxful crypto exchange drew the short end of the stick and could not keep up with the restrictive regulations.

Also, Read crypto and blockchain funding are rising despite the recent crash.

Ray stated that various operations to gain more African users didn’t sit well with the US regulatory bodies. He claimed blocking the US from its list would have been an option, but the lack of staff rendered it impossible.

Conclusion

As Africa’s crypto Industry steadily regains its former glory, the sudden end of Poacful will negatively impact its progress. Despite the impact of the crypto winter, various organizations such as Bimnace have carried on with the battle. Unfortunately, the end of another Africa-focused crypto firm was inevitable as the adverse effects of the crypto winter were as clear as day. Will crypto traders recover, or will the ecosystem steadily die down?