Traders across the African continent can now better trade without the hustle and bustle, hit and miss of the exchange rate.
This is after Umoja Coin, a groundbreaking digital currency developed to aid cross-border trade in Africa, was listed and started trading at Coinstore on January 8.
Established in 2020 and registered in Singapore, Coinstore is a prominent digital currency exchange that allows users to buy, sell, and trade a variety of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Umoja Coin, among others.
Coinstore is recognized for its range of features catering to both beginner and experienced traders, with a daily trade volume of over USD127 million (approximately Sh16.5 billion), a security rating of BBB and a 76 per cent security score.
“I thank our early supporters, investors, and the entire Umoja Coin community who have supported us in this journey and believing in our vision,” Umoja Coin chief marketing officer Paul Oloo said on Friday in Mombasa.
At Coinstore on January 8, Umoja Coin (UMC) traded with a starting price of USDT 0.75 (about Sh97) and two days later, its price increased to USDT 0.78. USDT stands for Tether, a digital currency that’s pegged to the US dollar at a ratio of 1:1.
Tether is a stablecoin, which is a blockchain-based currency meant to be less volatile than the other cryptocurrencies.
“Just in the last 48 hours, we have achieved a trading volume of USDT 105,000. That is a fantastic start for the project and the new coin,” Oloo said on Friday.
He said that is a testament to the trust and excitement that people have towards Umoja Coin.
“The future of Umoja Coin is about high energy, unity and progress,” Oloo said.
He said Umoja Coin will help mostly small-scale traders who have no bank accounts.
“About 55 per cent of traders in Africa have no bank accounts making them struggle to get loans because they have no records that could be used to trace them.
“What Umoja Coin does is give them the platform to trade because itself shows the transaction history of the traders. The transaction is documentation enough to improve trust,” Oloo said.
The Umoja Coin concept was conceived in Tanzania in 2021.
“Back then, with a small team and a bold vision, the Umoja Coin was just an idea and a spark of hope for financial freedom for Africa,” he said.
The Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, which caused trade to come to a standstill, banks to close, and transactions to dip, but with high transaction fees, brought an opportunity to create a digital currency that would cut the need for bureaucratic steps.
“We looked around and said can’t we have an African digital currency that works for Africa, one that connects each African country and the world? That is when Umoja Coin was born,” he said.
Oloo compared the UMC with the old barter trade system, where one would exchange goats with maize, only this time digital coins are used instead.
“You can send UMC from Kenya and somebody receives it instantly in Ghana, China or New York,” Oloo said.
The chief marketing officer said trade in Africa faces hurdles because of the exchange rate, where one has to change their currency into USD, losing some value in exchange rate fees in the process.
The vision is to get to a stage where Umoja Coin can be used for daily life purchases across Africa.
“We want to be able to pay school fees using Umoja Coin and also tip your boda boda guy using it,” Oloo said.
He said the idea is one day to have a farmer in Uganda sell his matoke to a buyer in Europe without having to look for a forex bureau or having middlemen during the transaction.
Oloo said Umoja Coin is planning to work in partnership with several businesses to create loyalty programs where loyal clients can be rewarded.
He said tourists from Europe will be able to use Umoja Coins to book hotels in Mombasa, pay for the tours in Tsavo Park and buy that nyama choma using Umoja Coins, eliminating the need to change their dollars and euros into Kenya shillings.
“We are not just any other cryptocurrency. We are about connecting Africa and people who are beyond,” Oloo said.
The chief marketing officer said the cryptocurrency’s future is bright, banking on the US president-elect Donald Trump’s pledge to make the US a cryptocurrency capital.
“The good thing about Umoja Coin is its simplicity in its use. We want to make it as simple to use as possible and make it understandable even to the man at the grassroots who only speaks their mother tongue,” Oloo said.
He said that is because people are resistant to new things if they do not understand them.
“We are in the process of engaging the community to let them understand how to secure their cryptocurrencies,” he said.