Africa Largest Economy Nigeria Tops Bitcoin Google Search Ranking

By: Mark Jessy

January 15, 2021 3:07 PM

In recent times Nigerians have developed interest for digital currencies with large numbers looking into bitcoin as a hedge against inflation as the Nigerian naira continues to weakens.

Nigeria ranks among the largest cryptocurrency markets in the world, according to recent data from Google Trends. The data shows Nigeria located in the Western part of Africa has a search score of 100, which doubles that of it's nearest rival.

Rise to the top of bitcoin search rankings signals the growing demand of crypto in Nigeria. The report also explains that country’s youth have been the decisive force behind this surge in bitcoin searches in the country, For a country, large as Nigeria it is hardly surprising for a country with a “median age of 18.4. interest in bitcoin and its adoption should be expected.

As the Google Trends data confirms, the Nigerian interest in bitcoin is also decentralized with the Delta State ranked first in that country. Lagos, the “most populous city” in Africa is ranked a distant 17th.

Nigerians are experiencing the level of financial inclusion that many have expected for too long. The freedom of money is a powerful thing, especially in a borderless, digital economy. Whether for remittances, e-commerce, bitcoin trading, more and more Nigerians are taking interest in bitcoin daily.

Meanwhile, the data from Google Trends also shows that two more African countries, namely South Africa (2) and Ghana (5), make it into the top five of the rankings. The next highest-ranked African country to feature on the list is Kenya at number 14.

In recent times these countries have seen an uprise in Bitcoin adoption, while Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) recently announced new regulations that mandate users of digital marketplace to pay digital tax at the rate of 1.5% on the entire transaction value.