Thoughts dashed on a plane about Afro Bitcoin Org 2024, Kenya 🇰🇪

Another belter of a conference from @AfroBitcoinOrg — it just gets better every year.

To expand on @jack’s point: the talks in the hall are great, but the magic?

It happens in the corridors, on the dance floors, and (in Kenya) out on safari! 🐘 🦒

Amazing to see @Machankura8333 gaining serious traction, @bitsacco making waves, and @Bitnob_official pushing Bitcoin deeper across the continent.

For me, the MVP was @tando_me.

Such a slick, low-key Bitcoin app. I used it way too much!

With Tando, you could literally move to Kenya tomorrow and live on Bitcoin completely (maybe you should)—and with relative ease.

Meanwhile, circular economies and pilot projects, especially those driven by @btc_dada, have totally taken off.

Congrats to @marcelorraine for winning Most Impactful Bitcoiner in Africa! She and her team are inspiring a generation of women to take financial literacy seriously—all while getting the men to up their game!

I didn’t get to visit @BtcBabies’ circular economy this time (guess I’ll have to come back—what a shame 😏), but a few hours in Kibera (@AfribitKibera) was eye-opening.

Here’s why:

Kenya’s mobile money king, Mpesa, requires KYC. That leaves many Kenyans—especially those without documentation—unable to use it.

Why is there KYC?

Yes you're right it's the government.

The government pushed Safaricom to enforce KYC around 2010 and yes you're right the govt holds a stake in the company 💀

But here’s the good news: Bitcoin doesn’t care about your ID or paperwork. In places like Kibera, Bitcoin is stepping in where Mpesa can’t.

I've seen this in townships in South Africa, shanty towns in Peru and on the dusty streets of Senegal, but it's hard to think of a better place to promote Bitcoin as a financial solution than in one of Africa’s largest slums.

Another standout this year was Bitcoin mining.

@gridless has already hit legend status in Africa, but mining projects are springing up everywhere.

Zambia is ramping up operations in rural locations (@QuantumHashCo) while Ethiopia has grabbed a surprising chunk of the global hash rate. Follow @GAMA_alliance ⛏️

Oh, and most if not all of these projects are renewable-powered. Read that again, Green Peace.

Finally, there’s something so refreshing about being surrounded by people who use Bitcoin as money.

Bitcoin flows freely across Africa—no “I’m HODLING this to my grave” vibes. Well, except for that one guy (iykyk).

Even better: not a single price discussion. Everyone was too busy using Bitcoin, tinkering with Bitcoin, or just having a good time.

I always learn so much in Africa—whether it’s Eritrean history, how to smuggle miners across borders or improving Bitcoin privacy with Jenga.

It inspires me to do a bit more and get bitcoin into the hards of more and more people.

Huge kudos to @Farida_N, @GloireKW, @princeakpah, and your team for putting together such a magical event.

This was my 9th African country in 20 years—I can’t wait to see where AfroBitcoin heads next!

Merry Christmas and here’s to the next one ✌️🎄