Latest news with #DecryptingCrypto
Daily Maverick
20-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Is Bitcoin useful yet? The question explored in ‘Decrypting Crypto: the utility conversation'
Forget speculation – can you buy bread with Bitcoin? Daily Maverick's second Decrypting Crypto webinar tackled whether crypto's promise of real-world use is finally growing roots from South Africa's (SA's) townships and suburbs to shops and remittances. Bitcoin's rocket ride is well known – a single coin, worth around R3,300 at the end of 2014, then called the worst investment of that year, is now worth more than R2-million. While exchanges do exist to turn Bitcoin into fiat currency, the question remains: is Bitcoin gaining real practical utility for ordinary South Africans? The answer is that while it's still early days, cryptocurrency is becoming more practical to use in everyday life, thanks to growing adoption and an expanding range of real-world applications. In this second edition of Business Maverick's Decrypting Crypto webinar series held on 10 July 2025, crypto journalist Lindsey Schutters looked to unpack the issue beyond the hype of the marketplace, in conversation with Larry Cooke, head of legal for Binance Africa, and Hermann Vivier, founder of Bitcoin Ekasi and Chairman of The Surfer Kids. It's about simplicity For Vivier, Bitcoin's usefulness isn't just about whether it works as a payment system. It's about what it represents. 'Bitcoin was created specifically as a response against central banking,' he said. 'Satoshi Nakamoto recognised that the basic problem is the centralisation of control. So the answer to that is decentralisation.' Vivier's motivation isn't profit, but principle. 'Utility is a second-layer conversation. The first layer is ideology,' he explained. 'If my utility application of this thing loses sight of that core question, then I'm not doing it right.''I want to be able to do everything I do with normal money. I want to be able to do that with Bitcoin – in the simplest, most straightforward way possible,' he continued. Building Bitcoin Ekasi But ideals are tested in the real world – which is exactly why he helped launch Bitcoin Ekasi in Mossel Bay. Inspired by El Salvador's Bitcoin Beach, the project is building a circular economy around Bitcoin. Salaries are paid in crypto, and spaza shops are encouraged to accept it. 'We've onboarded about 50 businesses in the community,' Vivier said. 'We currently pay 22 staff salaries entirely in Bitcoin. The coaches at Surfer Kids use that money to buy essentials like groceries and electricity. Where Bitcoin isn't accepted, I sometimes convert to rand – but the goal is for crypto to be used as is.' It's not an overnight transformation, though. 'Adoption is slow. It's gradual. And that's normal,' Vivier said. 'Money changes very slowly. Just look at how long it took to go from gold to fiat, or for credit cards to become mainstream.' Everyday use, and a grocery pocket While Vivier is building grassroots use cases, Cooke sees crypto utility growing both personally and institutionally. At Binance Africa, he focuses on legal frameworks, consumer protection and enabling everyday use. Cooke uses his Binance wallet to pay for groceries at Pick n Pay via the Lightning Network, a fast and cheap transaction layer built on top of Bitcoin. 'Freedom of money – that's our slogan,' he said. 'It's about giving consumers control over their assets and allowing them to choose the tools that work best for them.' He distinguishes between personal utility – how individuals make their money more efficient – and general utility, where a broader ecosystem enables spending and saving with crypto. 'What you're trying to solve for is efficiencies,' he explained. 'How do I get the most out of my money? How do I make it simpler, better, faster?' Taxes, scams and the chain that doesn't lie Crypto may be borderless, but Sars treats it as an asset – every disposal triggers a tax event. 'We do enable tax regimes because we are global… we've created a tax tool that allows individuals to reconcile buying and selling and basically calculate their own tax,' said Cooke. 'It's not a certificate per se, but it's one of the closest things you'll find at this point in time.' And while scams are a persistent risk, the blockchain never forgets: 'Once the crypto transaction takes place, you can't undo it. You can't remove it off the blockchain… Eventually you will get caught.' The conversation repeatedly returned to the need for education and inclusion. 'A lot of people have burnt their fingers in past hype cycles,' Vivier admitted. That's why responsible onboarding and community-building matter. For Cooke, the future isn't about crypto versus banks, but about co-existence. 'We're not here to compete with banks or M-Pesa,' he said. 'It's about interoperability. All technologies are embraced. All systems function together.' He points to mobile money's success in Kenya and explains why SA – with its robust banking infrastructure – hasn't seen the same adoption pattern. 'South Africans weren't desperate for a mobile solution like M-Pesa. But crypto can still be valuable in a strong financial system – especially when it offers new ways to move money or store value.' Volatility bites Of course, Bitcoin's volatility remains a sticking point. But Vivier argued that fiat currencies aren't much better – especially across Africa. 'The value of Bitcoin comes from its decentralised network and its rules. It's run without fail for 16 years.' Cooke agreed, adding: 'Fiat is just as volatile in some African countries. What we offer with crypto is transparency and immutability.' That transparency is also a double-edged sword. While the blockchain can expose fraud, it's also why CBDCs (central bank digital currencies) are raising red flags. 'CBDCs are a surveillance tool,' Vivier warned. 'They represent the final merger of money and state. With that control, governments can switch off protestors' bank accounts. That's dangerous.' 'This is why we're doing this series,' Schutters explained to viewers. 'Crypto isn't just a currency play – it's a community education project too.' 'Even I fall victim to concentrating too much on the investment asset side of Bitcoin, and forget to talk about the everyday-use case,' he confessed. One (big) question at a time 'Is crypto useful yet?' asks Schutters in conclusion. In short: yes, but it's still early days. Crypto is being used in Mossel Bay townships, at retail tills in Pick n Pay, and increasingly in online services and cross-border remittances. But broader adoption hinges on community education, smarter regulation and practical use cases. Both DM guests had advice for crypto newcomers. 'Ask questions,' Vivier urged. 'Don't feel stupid. This is a paradigm shift. Every person you onboard brings us closer.'
Daily Maverick
02-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Bitcoin reaches fever pitch — but always know what you're buying, say experts
TikTok traders, crypto evangelists and Bitcoin havens paint a picture of quick wins and easy exits. On Daily Maverick's Decrypting Crypto webinar, experts reminded investors that volatility, risk and regulation are all part of the crypto package. At more than R1-million a coin, Bitcoin's latest bull run is once again flooding feeds with promises of overnight wealth. Amid the media noise, experts are stepping in, urging caution: don't buy into something you don't understand. That was the message at Daily Maverick's Decrypting Crypto webinar, hosted by senior journalist Lindsey Schutters, in conversation with Christo de Wit, country manager of Luno, and Diketso Mashigo, head of the Financial Sector Conduct Authority's (FSCA's) licensing department. 'There's obviously a lot of clamour in the market,' Schutters said. 'Bitcoin is at an all-time high, it's a lot of money and everyone's trying to get in.' Don't invest in what you don't understand 'It is very important that people really get to understand what it is that they're buying into, what they're investing in and understand what the risks are,' Mashigo said. He stressed that the regulator expected authorised providers to actively educate their clients, especially when it came to a volatile asset such as crypto. While that may sound obvious, the crypto space is designed to move fast, often faster than many retail investors can realistically follow. Goals before gains 'When it comes to any kind of investment, whether it's crypto or not, it's important to have understanding and a very clear idea what your financial goals are, both short term and long term,' De Wit said. Crypto is notorious for its wild swings. Bitcoin itself has gone from R300,000 to R1-million, with some stomach-churning dips in between. 'Crypto is a higher risk asset class, and there is a lot of volatility,' De Wit said. Having a fundamental understanding of this was crucial in informing oneself when investing in crypto. Fractional ownership, full exposure A common crypto myth is that one needs to own a full coin to get started; an idea De Wit was quick to dispel. 'I think it's important for new-time investors to understand that you don't have to purchase an entire Bitcoin. You can purchase a fraction of it,' he explained. 'Even though Luno or the centralised exchange custodies it and keeps it in safekeeping, you have immediate access to further trade it, to withdraw it, to convert it back to rands, to convert it to other currencies.' The trick is choosing a credible licensed provider. 'Very carefully select your centralised exchange,' De Wit said. 'You can verify that on the FSCA website as well, to make sure that you know this is a cryptocurrency exchange platform that is licensed.' If your slice of the coin gains value, so does your investment. 'Any growth or loss, depending on what the market does, is related to the percentage that you hold,' De Wit said. Users can convert crypto to rands, transfer between wallets and even send Bitcoin to friends, which are growing trends in parts of the country. 'The whole Garden Route is becoming a crypto haven,' Schutters said. 'A lot of [people] are using stablecoins because they're just easier to transact with.' What does it mean to 'own' crypto? Ownership in the crypto space doesn't always look like traditional finance, but it follows similar principles, Mashigo explained. 'If I purchase a financial product, my ownership in that asset is represented somehow,' he said. 'And in this space, you can look at tokens. That, proportionately, is what I'm holding in that particular asset.' But how do you know that ownership is real and respected? De Wit pointed out a crucial consumer safeguard: proof of reserve. An important aspect to look out for is whether an exchange showcases proof of reserve, which is an audited report that validates that all consumer crypto currencies are exactly where the platforms say they are, he said. It's one of the most transparent ways users can confirm their holdings exist and they're not being lent out or siphoned off without consent. The three golden rules Mashingo broke down FSCA's consumer guidance into three pillars for anyone considering a crypto investment: Understand the product. Know exactly what you're buying, how it works and if it addresses your needs. Know the risks. Volatility, market swings and speculation are part of crypto's nature. Be ready to stomach the sudden drops. Verify the platform. 'Understand the party or the platform or the venue or the provider that you're dealing with, whether they're licensed or not,' said Mashigo. 'That's simple. You come through us. You check on our website, pop us an email, and we can confirm.' Growing regulation Mashigo made it clear that the FSCA was here to make sure that people knew what they were getting themselves into. 'We make sure that … certain basic things are in place,' said Mashigo and specified that businesses had to be contactable, transparent and authorised to do what they claimed. With crypto asset providers (CASPs) now being brought under formal licensing and regulatory oversight in South Africa, the hope is that consumer protection will continue to improve. DM
