November 02, 2020, Johannesburg, South Africa - Paxful, the global crypto marketplace powered by people announced adding Uhuru Wallet as a payment method to their platform. The company, known for its goal of financial inclusion, is helping the underbanked around the world to gain financial independence using peer-to-peer transactions. The partnership with Uhuru will help encompass this vision and provide easy access to the crypto economy for users in Southern Africa.

Acting as a fiat on and off-ramp on the Paxful platform, which already hosts over 300 different payment options, Uhuru Wallet will enable users to buy and sell Bitcoin (BTC) and Tether (USDT) with ease. Uhuru Wallet is a secure digital wallet with a convenient, speedy, and cost-effective system of payments for goods and services across Africa, including airtime and electricity voucher purchases, lottery as well as DSTV, Avon, and INUKA payments.

“This is the perfect opportunity to partner with local talent and support the growth of the crypto community in South Africa. By joining forces with Uhuru, we can unlock more options for our African users, many of whom are held back by restrictions of traditional financial systems, so we’re making crypto more accessible as a real-world payment method,” said Ray Youssef, CEO, and co-founder of Paxful.

Sending money back home a significant challenge for many Africans
The cost of financial transactions in Sub-Saharan Africa can be sky-high. Fortunately, the global crypto-currency space is providing African users with a cheaper alternative for personal and business-related transactions across borders.

A recent report by the blockchain forensic and research group Chainalysis on cryptocurrency use around the globe revealed that monthly crypto transfers under $10,000 to and from Africa jumped more than 55% in a year, reaching $316 million in June 2020. The number of monthly transfers nearly doubled, surpassing 600,000 transactions with most of the activity taking place in Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya.

“Many Africans living abroad face difficulties when it comes to remittances or payments, as modern money transfer operators are often expensive and time-consuming. We are now providing our users with a practical and cost-effective process offering them a global financial passport. For true financial inclusion to happen, a free market for money transfers is required,” added Youssef.

Offering users decentralized and borderless payment methods
Launched earlier this year by Uhuru Innovative Solutions (PTY) Limited / Bitkesh, a Zimbabwean-born startup established in 2017, Uhuru Wallet believes that having a transaction account is the first step towards financial inclusion.

“We’re thrilled to be able to partner with a leading international marketplace like Paxful. Uhuru is a product for Africans by Africans, and we share Paxful’s vision of greater financial inclusion. We look forward to working with them to include more Africans in the global economy,” said Reginald Tsvetu, Marketing and Business Development Officer (CMBDO).

Developed on the Stellar blockchain, the easy interactive Fintech platform provides escrow services to buyers and sellers of goods and services. Uhuru Wallet is accessible via WhatsApp catering to the growing number of people who have access to smartphones.

The leading markets on the continent for Paxful include Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. Celebrating its fifth year in service this year, the company has established itself as a pioneer in the P2P crypto space.