The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is the fastest-growing cryptocurrency market in the world, breaching US$566 billion in transactions from July 2021 to June 2022, an increase of 48% over the previous year, according to a report compiled by blockchain data firm Chainalysis.

While Africa accounts for only 2% of global cryptocurrency transaction volumes, the country has some of the most advanced cryptocurrency markets in the world, with widespread adoption and integration into users’ day-to-day financial activities.

This adoption of cryptocurrencies is boosted by small retail payments, with Africa engaging the world’s largest portion of crypto retail payments worth less than US$1.000.

Interestingly, the number of small retail transfers increased amid the bear market in May, while the number of transfers of other sizes decreased.

Africa also has the highest prevalence of peer-to-peer transactions worldwide. Peer-to-peer transactions in the country account for nearly 6% of global crypto transaction volume, breaching the levels in Central and Southern Asia and Oceania, the region with the second-highest volumes in that category.

“Our interviews suggest that this reflects the trend of many young people in Sub-Saharan Africa turning to cryptocurrency as a way to preserve and build wealth in spite of low economic opportunity, as opposed to other countries where we see many using cryptocurrency as a way to multiply their existing wealth,” the report said.