Crypto market meltdown rattles 12 million East African investors
Cryptocurrency-based crimes hit a record high in 2021, with illicit transactions rising 79.4 percent to $14 billion, from $7.8 billion in 2020. PHOTO | FILE
Business and Technology Reporter in Nairobi, Kenya
Nation Media Group
A painful financial journey has ensued for at least 12 million East Africans who are now counting, in billions of dollars, losses both from the cryptocurrency market crash and a series of related Ponzi ‘get-rich-quick’ schemes that have unfolded in the wake of the crisis.
As extreme market conditions force legitimate crypto-exchanges to close shop with many laying off employees, reports of some crypto-investment schemes disappearing with investors’ funds have started to surface. This raises questions about the future of unconventional assets.
