It is a regular gesture from a referee to brandish a yellow card right into the face of a soccer player to sound a warning that any more breach of the rules will result into a send-off.

The same applies to the crypto industry, where millions of users ignored several yellow flags on the crypto exchange FTX, till the flags turned red – then it collapsed in scandal.

In Africa, especially during the initial years of crypto adoption – between 2012 and 2017 – many naïve users lost their hard-earned cash to bitcoin scams. This has been attributed to the lack of information on how to invest in crypto in a secure way. Newbies still lose money.

Reclaiming Trust

But since 2018, Yellow Card, a US-based fintech startup began the tough task of redeeming the image of crypto trade in Africa, and reclaiming trust that was fast dwindling. To avoid a crypto yellow flag, users need to trade on platforms founded through honesty. Such platforms must be secure. That is the premise under which Yellow Card was founded.

Chris Maurice, an angel investor, co-founded the Yellow Card platform with digital currency enthusiast, Justin Poiroux. Last December, it was recognized in the ‘Big Money Startups’ category of the Forbes 30 under 30 listing for their contribution in advancing the crypto industry in Africa.

Yellow Card focuses on building new crypto-driven financial infrastructure for Africa. The goal is lowering barriers, eliminating needless fees, and providing the continent with greater access to financial services and crypto cyber security.

It is also a digital currency exchange platform that converts local currencies into bitcoins. This helps users secure the process of money transfer and hedge against volatility.

With a financial inclusion goal, its educational services are both app and web-based. Since its launch in Nigeria in 2019, Yellow Card has continued to record an exponential growth; developing into one of the most trusted cryptocurrency companies in Africa.

A global team of cybersecurity experts protects the Yellow Card platform round the clock to cushion user funds from online account hackers and P2P-related trade frauds.

Financial Literacy is Critical

Oparinde Babatunde, the startup’s director of special projects, told Nodo News that financial security literacy programs have brought financial inclusion education to people in remote parts of Nigeria.

“We try to reach out to them – the people – and understand their points. We also get feedback from them to create products that are suited for those types of markets,” said Babatunde in an interview in February.

With its sets of programs, the startup makes it easy for all people across the continent to learn crypto trade. It teaches them how to transact anywhere in the African continent, using bank transfer, cards and even mobile money.

Last September, it held its first ‘Women in Crypto’ virtual conference to promote diversity and inclusion in the industry. It highlighted the leading women in cryptocurrency and opened up space for more women to join the industry.

It also launched Yellow Pay, which makes it easier and much cheaper for users to send and receive money. The platform is a crypto-powered way to send value across borders.

Currently, according to Babatunde, the platform has some 1.5 million active users and many more are still joining it.

“There is a growing surge in the demand for cryptocurrency in Nigeria,” Babatunde explains. “Many Nigerians are particularly turning to USDT stablecoin in place of the US dollar. There’s dollar scarcity in Nigeria and USDT stablecoin has minimal restrictions, and is easier to access.”

Spreading Wings Across Africa

Yellow Card’s expansion also saw it get the largest ever fundraising for a cryptocurrency in Africa. It consequently expanded its presence in the continent from the previous 12 to the current 16 countries. The latest launches have been in Gabon, Senegal, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“In essence, there’s a generally growing trend towards digital payments. Fintech apps are an alternative to the traditional way of transacting within and outside the country ,” Babatunde says.

It was the first cryptocurrency company on the continent to secure a Virtual Asset Service Provider license to operate in Botswana from the Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA). This recognition opens up greater channels of expansion with regards to payment partners, banking, and expanding the company’s client base across Africa.

Botswana is among the few countries in the world that are implementating of tighter crypto regulations.

The startup has also recorded further growth internally when it almost doubled its staff. Yellow Card now has at least 217 employees who work from 24 different countries. More than 95% of the staff is based in Africa and 39% of these employees are female.

“Making basic financial services accessible to 1.4 billion people via crypto is not just a pipe dream. It is a goal we are actively pursuing every day,” says Babatunde.

(NOTE: Corrected the company’s userbase and updated the story.)