“You are free to utilize your own money to live your best life on Freedom Day,” stated BitcoinZAR, a Bitcoin supporter in South Africa.
South Africa marked Freedom Day on Wednesday, commemorating the country’s first post-apartheid democratic election in 1994.
We spoke with a number of prominent members of the South African crypto community to find out what the holiday meant to them. “Freedom Day implies you are free to utilize your own money to live your best life,” said BitcoinZAR, a Bitcoin enthusiast in South Africa.
Several cryptocurrency-related businesses have sprung up in the country, including Luno, a cryptocurrency exchange, and certain businesses, such as retail outlets and travel agencies, are already accepting Bitcoin payments.
Luno, which was created in 2013 by two South Africans, now has ten million subscribers in more than 40 countries. Last year, the company’s quick growth was proven by the acquisition of one million new customers in just four months. Pick & Pay, South Africa’s largest online retailer at the time, started taking Bitcoin payments at one of its locations in 2017, indicating the currency’s potential as a mode of payment.
Unravel Surf Vacation is a travel business based in South Africa that started taking Bitcoin in 2015. Since 2011, the travel firm has predominantly targeted the Russian/Eastern European market, offering surfing excursions to South Africa, according to the company. Because to Russia’s military entry into Ukraine, the region is currently in disarray. Clients of Unravel Surf Travel are increasingly willing to pay for excursions with bitcoin as a result of Western sanctions and fiat currency instability.
Lukhangele Brabo, a 17-year-old Bitcoin enthusiast and advocate from South Africa, revealed why Freedom Day is so important to him.”Having the most power and right to act,” Brabo explained, “means having the greatest power and right to act on Freedom Day.” Brabo formerly worked at Surfer Kids in Diaz Beach, South Africa, where he was paid in fiat. Unfortunately for him, when he was a young man, his family used to take all of his money, leaving him with no other source of income.
According to Borgen Magazine, about 20% of South Africans live on less than $1.90 each day. Inequality and poverty are worsened in South Africa by pervasive corruption. From 2009 to 2018, former President Jacob Zuma presided over massive corruption. Zuma’s tenure is projected to have cost South Africa at least $35 billion, with more than three million people falling into poverty.
