Binance Opens Its First Fiat-to-Crypto Exchange in Uganda

44 million Ugandans are able to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum without fees during the next month.

Binance recently announced the launch of a fiat-to-crypto exchange in Uganda and the platform will begin processing deposits and withdrawals of Ugandan Shillings beginning on October 17th. The exchange, called Binance Uganda, is the first official fiat-crypto exchange launched by Binance and the platform is able to handle 1.4 million transactions per second.

Get ready! We are excited to announce the launch of #Binance Uganda! Full sign-ups are now live at https://t.co/hzLBj9Dcrw, deposits and trading coming soon.https://t.co/kpqSVKulox pic.twitter.com/0jdE4cVspI

— BinanceUG (@BinanceUG) October 15, 2018

Uganda Loves Blockchain

Ugandans will be able to trade Ugandan Shilling (UGX) pairs with Bitcoin and Ethereum. Binance also plans to provide additional trading pairs in the future. All users are also exempt from trading fees for the first month and the exchange provides 24/7 customer support.  

Binance CFO Wei Zhou said, “We are extremely proud to officially launch our first fiat-crypto exchange in Uganda,” and noted, “This is only the first step in our efforts to use blockchain technology to support sustainable economic development in Africa.”

Uganda, Kenya, and South Africa each have burgeoning cryptocurrency communities and Uganda is already a host of important blockchain conferences and receives strong support from the Ugandan government and financial regulators. Furthermore, Uganda currently has one of the youngest populations worldwide and Binance sees an immeasurable opportunity for growth in Africa, a continent which still has one of the lowest rates for accessing banking and financial service.

Binance will ‘Bank’ the Unbanked

A recent post by Binance Labs director Benjamin Rameau explained that “In Sub-Saharan Africa, only 43% of people aged 15+ own a bank account versus a global average of 69%.” As the infrastructure continues to develop, one can expect the country of 44 million to become a leader in Africa’s developing cryptocurrency sector. Binance also has plans to launch crypto-fiat exchanges in Singapore, Liechtenstein, and Malta. Binance also has suggested that they will launch more exchanges in various regions throughout the world.

What do you think about Binance’s plans to launch crypto-fiat exchanges throughout the world? Share your thoughts in the comments below! 

Images courtesy of  Shutterstock and Twitter/@BinanceUG.