Would Bitcoin not have been a better option for Zimbabwe?

[Kakmakr]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36210680

I quote "bank customers are not always able to withdraw the amount of US dollars they want because of a shortage of dollar notes in Zimbabwe."

This is one of the countries in Africa with the poorest population and the greatest need for micro transactions. I think this decision will push more people to use alternative methods of payment and also alternative investment currencies to protect their wealth. We have already seen M-pesa making in-roads into Kenia and other African countries as a alternative to their reserve currency.

The political instability in that country will not help in making sound financial decisions and they hate western influences, but they accept the dollar? ^hmmmmm^

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[Jet Cash]

I gather Venezuela is even worse.

[pedrog]

18.5% of the population has Internet access, yeah, bitcoin would be awesome...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_Internet_users

[RodeoX]

Hell, tulips would have been a better choice for that basket case.

[Cuidler]

Bitcoin is best used on Internet only. Most people need to use paper money instead, because the infrastructure to receive digital form of money only (which can be both traditional Visa/MC or trustless Bitcoin cryptocurrency) is far from ready in Zimbabwe.

So only the tech savvy can store their wealth to Bitcoin there actually.

[mokimarket]

I was thinking they could print these new notes with bitcoin private keys imbedded in each note to add some intrinsic value to the notes.

[Daniel91]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36210680

I quote "bank customers are not always able to withdraw the amount of US dollars they want because of a shortage of dollar notes in Zimbabwe."

This is one of the countries in Africa with the poorest population and the greatest need for micro transactions. I think this decision will push more people to use alternative methods of payment and also alternative investment currencies to protect their wealth. We have already seen M-pesa making in-roads into Kenia and other African countries as a alternative to their reserve currency.

The political instability in that country will not help in making sound financial decisions and they hate western influences, but they accept the dollar? ^hmmmmm^

You have to understand a few things here.
No so many people in that area can use Internet.
If they can use internet, they don't have enough skills and knowledge how to use Internet for finance, payments, sending or receiving money etc.
Even if they have internet and have some understanding about sending money or Internet, finance etc. what they can do with bitcoin there?
They can't buy or sell anything for bitcoin.
No, right now, I don't think bitcoin is better option for them.

[MingLee]

I gather Venezuela is even worse.

It is brutal for both countries, but it is probably especially bad in Venezuela. There is basically no economy for them to use, they have so few people working they can't really export anything, and the regime in power doesn't plan on backing down anytime soon.

This is part of what socialism gives us, especially when applied in extreme cases. Brazil, Venezuela, Peru, lots of these countries.

[voztata]

Bitcoin would definitely be the better choice for Zimbabwe. But the problem is that it needs internet and internet connection is really rough there. I mean, somebody, an individual or a company, would have to invest/donate to Zimbabwe so they can have access to better internet and that would require heck load of funds and guts.

[Snorek]

18.5% of the population has Internet access, yeah, bitcoin would be awesome...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_Internet_users

And this is your answer guys. As much as we all want to popularize bitcoin and let it be solution to economic problem of every nation this simply can't happen anytime soon.
Bitcoin is only good in first world countries - with developed internet network and whole infrastructure present. Africa in most cases won't be a good place for BTC.

[Kprawn]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36210680

I quote "bank customers are not always able to withdraw the amount of US dollars they want because of a shortage of dollar notes in Zimbabwe."

This is one of the countries in Africa with the poorest population and the greatest need for micro transactions. I think this decision will push more people to use alternative methods of payment and also alternative investment currencies to protect their wealth. We have already seen M-pesa making in-roads into Kenia and other African countries as a alternative to their reserve currency.

The political instability in that country will not help in making sound financial decisions and they hate western influences, but they accept the dollar? ^hmmmmm^

You have to understand a few things here.
No so many people in that area can use Internet.
If they can use internet, they don't have enough skills and knowledge how to use Internet for finance, payments, sending or receiving money etc.
Even if they have internet and have some understanding about sending money or Internet, finance etc. what they can do with bitcoin there?
They can't buy or sell anything for bitcoin.
No, right now, I don't think bitcoin is better option for them.

The internet access requirement is BS.... I travelled to most of these countries and they are using mobile phones. We have seen people linking Sms's to Bitcoin and sending Bitcoin via emails. If these

people are knowledgeable enough to use Mpesa or whatever it is called, then they would know how to use Bitcoin. There are also enough third party services like Bitpesa to help them figure it out.

The first world countries need to give these people a chance to enter the financial market and to use this technology. We cannot keep this to ourselves.... 3rd world countries will just skip certain

stages in technology.. like they did with the phones... In first world countries... people started out with landlines and progressed to mobile / wifi access... Now 3rd world countries can skip directly to

wifi and landlines are not needed.... same thing with Bitcoin... Most of these people are going to skip the traditional fiat system {Bank accounts} and just jump directly into digital alternatives like

Mpesa & Bitcoin.

[ekoice]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36210680

I quote "bank customers are not always able to withdraw the amount of US dollars they want because of a shortage of dollar notes in Zimbabwe."

This is one of the countries in Africa with the poorest population and the greatest need for micro transactions. I think this decision will push more people to use alternative methods of payment and also alternative investment currencies to protect their wealth. We have already seen M-pesa making in-roads into Kenia and other African countries as a alternative to their reserve currency.

The political instability in that country will not help in making sound financial decisions and they hate western influences, but they accept the dollar? ^hmmmmm^

You have to understand a few things here.
No so many people in that area can use Internet.
If they can use internet, they don't have enough skills and knowledge how to use Internet for finance, payments, sending or receiving money etc.
Even if they have internet and have some understanding about sending money or Internet, finance etc. what they can do with bitcoin there?
They can't buy or sell anything for bitcoin.
No, right now, I don't think bitcoin is better option for them.

I do agree with the information about the internet usage in zimbabwe is not that great like in other parts of modern world and people are not familiar with online transactions as well. even though internet is available but the usage of bitcoins is not that normal and formal forever one and not even  understandable to many.

[Wapinter]

How can they have bitcoins when their foreign reserve is almost zero?They cant have lots of bitcoins even if they set up lots of mining farm.They need to buy bitcoin but without dollars,they cant even buy it

[JaneEverycunt]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36210680

I quote "bank customers are not always able to withdraw the amount of US dollars they want because of a shortage of dollar notes in Zimbabwe."

This is one of the countries in Africa with the poorest population and the greatest need for micro transactions.

If these poors are all tech savvy, have computers/iPhones with unlimited internet, than perhaps

[LCSociety]

The internet access requirement is BS.... I travelled to most of these countries and they are using mobile phones. We have seen people linking Sms's to Bitcoin and sending Bitcoin via emails.

Yeah Zimbabwe is very technologically up to date. Actually, there are parts of the US that are potentially more derelict and poverty stricken than the roughest towns in Zimbabwe.

Have look at this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeiGk3I3WIE

The traffic may be an issue, but you get the sense that their economy is quite mature and developed - perhaps more so than the bankrupt state of Detroit if you were to be a little pedantic

Would bitcoin be a good "option" for Zimbabwe? I don't know... The governments of Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, China, Russia, the United States have all 'publicly' denounced the use of bitcoin in one way or another for their own populations. Despite this, members of their economies still use bitcoin quite heavily.

Rest assured there is already a bustling bitcoin market in Zimbabwe, just like there is in potentially every country in the world.

If you'd click onto the Zimbabwean localbitcoins website: https://localbitcoins.com/country/ZW there are hundreds of OTC bitcoin traders there, that have surpassed 150 BTC in trading volume, which is roughly $68,000 USD. More than the average US citizen earns per annum.

So yes, Bitcoin is a good option... which is probably why they are already using it.

Don't fall for the media spin... As it pertains to natural resources, africa is - bar none - the wealthiest continent on the planet.

[fenican]

And how would the broke Zimbabwe government have bought bitcoins to use as a currency?

They could have minted their own Alt coin but that would have had the same problem - rather than hyperinflation the Zimbabwe alt coin would, like most alt coins, have hyperdepreciation.

[calkob]

Definatly better for the average person, for the dictators in power probably not so good....

[JaneEverycunt]

The internet access requirement is BS.... I travelled to most of these countries and they are using mobile phones. We have seen people linking Sms's to Bitcoin and sending Bitcoin via emails.

Yeah Zimbabwe is very technologically up to date. Actually, there are parts of the US that are potentially more derelict and poverty stricken than the roughest towns in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe GDP per capita (yearly): $475.26 US. That's less than $1.50/day.
Can't put much of a spin on that

[ebliever]

I was thinking they could print these new notes with bitcoin private keys imbedded in each note to add some intrinsic value to the notes.

And how do you prevent people from spending the bitcoin with the private keys before passing the note on to someone else? Physical expressions of bitcoin (printing the private key on something) have to be kept absolutely private or the funds can be stolen.

[ebliever]

The traffic may be an issue, but you get the sense that their economy is quite mature and developed - perhaps more so than the bankrupt state of Detroit if you were to be a little pedantic

I was born in Detroit. It's mismanagement is legendary, but if you take Detroit _as a whole_ and compare it with Zimbabwe, it still beats the latter hands down in economic terms. Perhaps because Mugabe is at least as bad as Coleman Young and the rest of the bunch in Detroit combined.

Hopefully someone in Zimbabwe is using bitcoin, and introducing it to others. But there is no place in the world where bitcoin is more than a drop in the bucket at this time, compared to its potential.