Quelle surprise: Central African bank scolds the CAR for Bitcoin adoption
The governor of the Bank of Central African States (Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale, BEAC) has issued a scathing letter to the Central African Republic (CAR) regarding the country’s adoption of cryptocurrencies.
In a letter addressed to the CAR Finance Minister Hervé Ndoba, the Governor of the BEAC Abbas Mahamat Tolli describes the “substantial negative impact” that the CAR adopting crypto will have on the monetary union of Central Africa.
The CAR passed a bill announcing its intention to adopt cryptocurrencies in April. No surprise that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has already called the decision concerning. But now, the BEAC is adding fuel to the fire.
The BEAC also adds that the adoption of cryptocurrency in the CAR and the potential move away from the CFA currency is “problematic.”
The CFA currency has two near-identical forms, used across former French colonies in Central and West Africa. It is pegged to the Euro, which many Bitcoiners and locals dislike.
Gloire, the founder of Kiveclair, a Bitcoin Beach-inspired refugee project in neighboring Congo, told Cointelegraph that the CFA “makes whole countries dependent.” Mama Bitcoin, the first person in Senegal to accept Bitcoin as payment, told Cointelegraph that “the CFA is made in France and is — for want of a better word, colonial money.”
Naturally, the Governor of the BEAC is keen to cling to the CFA. He understands the threat that the CAR adopting Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrencies poses. The letter states:
The CEMAC (La Communauté économique et monétaire de l'Afrique centrale) is the Economic Community of Central African States. The CEMAC promotes regional economic cooperation in Central Africa. Supporting the BEAC is the “primary objective” of the
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