Category: Blockchain Technology
3 Zim startups to pitch at Africa Blockchain Incubation demo day, you can watch live
The Africa Blockchain Institute prides itself for championing initiatives that drive digital transformation in Africa through blockchain technology. They have an Incubation program where they groom startups from across the continent to leverage blockchain technology to deliver unique use cases. It was just in December 2021 that we wrote about them opening up applications for […]
Run with Bitcoin: Crypto evangelist stops by Zim on “40 countries in 400 days” world tour
Paco De La India is a Bitcoin enthusiast who has been travelling across the world with his Bitcoin wallet and spreading the gospel of the alternative currency on his Run with Bitcoin initiative. He recently stopped by Zimbabwe on a two-city tour which started in Bulawayo. “I have been traveling around the world over the […]
Local digital identity startup FlexID receives funding from Algorand Foundation
Zimbabwean founded blockchain start-up, FlexID Technologies (formerly FlexFinTx), has signed a Simple Agreement For Equity (SAFE) with the Algorand Foundation, to further develop and scale their Self Sovereign Identity (SSI) platform. The startup strives to make its decentralized digital identity network available in emerging markets where over one billion people are thought to lack formal […]
Blockchain startup Uhuru Wallet included in RBZ Fintech Sandbox
While the blockchain is often touted as a game-changing technology that is capable of disrupting traditional finance, it is yet to fulfil this promise. The race to satisfy this pledge is still on but numerous obstacles such as regulatory uncertainty are standing in the way. For different reasons, regulators in some parts of the world […]
Zim blockchain startups! This challenge could fast track you to the Seedstars International Ventures Fund
FT x Cardano Blockchain Challenge in association with Project Catalyst, Seedstars, and FT Talent by Financial Times has a mission to source ventures interested in leveraging the Cardano Blockchain platform & community and engage with ventures interested in building on Cardano. Throughout the program, the selected startups will get a chance to participate in a […]
Crypto startups, check out this US$1 million fund
Mercy Corps is launching a new Crypto for Good Fund of $1 million to test and support blockchain-based solutions for people who are currently low-income and/or unbanked. Up to 10 social enterprises will receive up to $100,000 in grant funding to test their pilot projects applying decentralized finance and blockchain technology to build financial inclusion […]
Two Zim startups partner to provide Digital Identity in Healthcare for millions in Africa
Algorand powered local blockchain startup FlexID (FlexFinTx) has extended its Self Sovereign Identity platform to the healthcare industry in what the company says is a world-first real-world use case scenario in partnership with Ubuntu Clinics. The former is a Zimbabwean founded firm that is also registered in Singapore with operations in Africa and Southeast Asia […]
Blockchain startups! Check out this US$20K Africa-wide Bootcamp
DFS Lab and Stellar have announced that applications are open for our second Blockchain Bootcamp, designed to give early to mid-stage startups in Africa an opportunity to build on Stellar, an open-source blockchain network for financial services and products. The Bootcamp will culminate in a demo day where companies with the most promising solutions built on Stellar will be […]
Botswana passes crypto bill, unlike Zim they want to stop the scams
The Parliament of Bostwana on Tuesday unanimously passed crypto legislation under The Virtual Asset Bill which will regulate cryptocurrencies and digital assets as reported by Bloomberg. According to Botswana’s Minister for Finance, Peggy Serame, the Virtual Asset Bill is there as an anti-money laundering (AML) measure with opposition lawmakers saying that if left unregulated the […]
Entrepreneurs! Applications for the Africa Blockchain Incubation Program are open!
The Africa Blockchain Incubation Program is focused on grooming African Blockchain StartUps, to spark creativity and ideas implementation around Distributed Ledger Technologies, insufficiently present in the Local Innovation and Entrepreneurship Landscape of Egypt and Zimbabwe. Qualified candidates will be nurtured through a structured 4-Month course of Workshops, Training, Development, Mentor Sessions and Community Events, through […]
Zimbos were creating money on EcoCash, OneMoney and telecash using blockchain tech – RBZ governor. And more revelations
The RBZ governor, Dr John Panonetsa Mangudya sat down for an interview with Trevor Ncube. We talked about what was said in the first part of the interview here. Now, we continue with the story and get to the meat of the interview, in my opinion. I feel I must warn you that if you […]
Zimbocash now has mobile app and they also rolled out 2FA
Zimbocash, the company that is pushing to be Zimbabwe’s “sound money solution”, has finally launched a mobile application on Android. The launch of the app has taken a bit of time and was something that I thought might be a bit far off after the crypto went down last year because the team at Zimbocash […]
UNICEF & Impact Hub Hre testing Guta, a blockchain nutrition system for schools
The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), City of Harare Nutrition Unit and Impact Hub Harare are prototyping an application called Guta. The app is a blockchain solution that will help children and schools improve nutritional standards. “After a long year of planning around many lockdowns, building the technology and working with the Ministry […]
Breaking down cryptos, potential regulation & opportunities in the Zimbabwean context
We held a Twitter Space breaking down a study that was done by The Zimbabwe Blockchain Technology Think Tank called “Towards Virtual Asset Regulation and Adoption of Blockchain Technology in Zimbabwe’s Context”. The think tank itself comprised of Hon Advocate Fortune Chasi, MP Dr Solomon Guramatunhu, MBChB, Opththamology Dr Immaculate Motsi-Omoijiade, PHD (she/her) Cryptocurrency Prosper […]
[Download] Towards Virtual Assets Regulation and Adoption of Blockchain Technologies in Zimbabwe’s Context
Cryptocurrencies and Zimbabwe have been water and oil since the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) banned traditional financial institutions from conducting business with crypto exchanges. Many have made the argument that cryptos and blockchain technology could be one of the solutions that could help Zimbabwe in its economic strife. We have advocated for the adoption […]
ZASH: Much ado about nothing
One Thursday morning in sunny October Zimbabweans woke up to find that the cryptocurrency that they had been stacking up by spamming links in WhatsApp groups had finally taken off and was now in orbit. In crypto-land we call it ‘to the moon’ and ZASH (the cryptocurrency for the ‘decentralised currency for Zimbabwe’) had made […]
Local startup AfriBlocks to co-host US-based blockchain summit
Local freelance startup and the first Zimbabwean startup to be selected for US-based incubator, Afriblocks, will be co-hosting the 2021 Black Blockchain Summit. The conference will be held over three days starting from the 24th of September in Washington DC (and beamed virtually). “We are excited to co-host such a major event. This summit is […]
Prof. Mthuli Ncube continues to ignore local crypto startups
It might appear as if I am stalking Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube but some of the things he has said recently have been concerning. Last week Prof. Mthuli Ncube toured a Dubai Crypto Hub and tweeted that he had found a way to make remittances cheaper while there. Now, if you have been around Techzim […]
Mthuli Ncube’s tour of Dubai crypto hub shows govt isn’t aware of local startups
Finance Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube yesterday put out a tweet saying he had visited the DMCC Crypto Centre in Dubai. If you have never heard the name DMCC before, the firm offers a number of services among them cryptographic blockchain, and distributed ledger technologies. I visited the DMCC CRYPTO CENTRE in Dubai, which is a […]
Election integrity, music royalties & other use cases for cryptos and blockchain technology
Part two of our discussion on the benefits of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology is a more focused one. In this episode, we look at the use cases for the blockchain and cryptos that go beyond financial services. And I was joined yet again by Financial Services Lawyer and Blockchain Technology Analyst, Prosper Mwedzi. You can […]
Bitcoin price fluctuations and how Zim is being lapped in the crypto adoption race
Bitcoin and altcoin price fluctuation is a complex topic to get to the bottom of. There are a number of factors that influence their price. Some factors are apparent while others are in the realm of speculation. To shed light on what causes the dips and peaks in the price of Bitcoin we were joined […]
Digital Korokoza: The dark side of crypto mining
It’s diamonds that are forever, not your computer hardware. A few weeks ago, I was pleasantly surprised when I received a 5-minute voice note from an enterprising young man that I know from my local church. The Chemical Engineering graduate innocently elaborated his plan of crypto mining on any high-powered computer I may own. Essentially, […]
Zim becomes the first in Africa to roll out E-Livestock’s cattle logging system
Our teapot shaped country has become the first nation in Africa to roll out E-livestock‘s blockchain cattle tracing system. The solution which is powered by Mastercard’s Blockchain-based Provenance solution allows Zimbabwean farmers to log the records of cattle sold across the country. “Mastercard’s Provenance solution can safely and securely track the authenticity of the cattle’s […]
Edward Snowden’s first NFT sells for more than US$5 million as the seeming madness continues
Art gone digital
Local blockchain startup among World Bank’s Mission Billion Challenge finalists
I would not be totally surprised if you have never heard of the Mission Billion Challenge. I myself had not heard of it until yesterday, when Victor Mapunga reached out to me, explaining that the company he co-founded and is currently CEO of was one of the finalists of this competition. After exchanging a couple […]
ZIMBOCASH activates payment platform – 13 000 transactions in first 48hrs
A month ago, ZIMBOCASH (ZASH) listed their cryptocurrency on Bithumb Global. In our article on the listing, one of the questions we raised was where people getting the crypto would actually use the currency. A press release from ZASH yesterday suggests they are taking strides to address that. On Monday, ZIMBOCASH enabled peer-to-peer payments using […]
Nespresso Using Blockchain Tech In Tracking Origins Of Zim Coffee
3 years ago, Nespresso announced the Reviving Origins program with the goal of restoring coffee agriculture in regions affected by conflict, climate and political issues. Zim is one of the beneficiaries of this program and has been part of the initiative since its inception. The blockchain platform traces the AAA Sustainable coffee from farms in Zimbabwe […]
Can Blockchain Offer A Better Alternative To EcoCash’s Agent Problem?
It has been an interesting yet unsurprising past couple of weeks for Zimbabwe’s most popular mobile money firm EcoCash. The company has been in a row with the Central Bank which has claimed loopholes in the EcoCash platform have driven up currency exchange rates and devalued local currency – one of the major issues is […]
ZIMBOCASH Lists Cryptocurrency Token, Wants To Be Alternative To ZW$
Earlier this week, ZIMBOCASH – a local decentralised cryptocurrency- listed their token ZASH on Bithumb Global (a cryptocurrency exchange headquartered in South Korea). In marketing material, ZIMBOCASH is marketing the ZASH token as a replacement alternative to Zimbabwe’s flailing Zimbabwe Dollar. A total of 4.5 billion ZASH tokens have been created with 950 million currently […]
Fintech Partnering With Zimbabwean Bank To Issue Gold-Backed Digital Currency Shares More Details
A few weeks ago, we reported on the then-impending agreement between Apollo Fintech and the government on what we were hearing would be a gold-backed digital currency. Since publishing that story we’ve stayed in touch with Apollo Fintech patiently waiting for any update they had on that front and they’ve finally shared a bit more […]