I always like to catch up with what is happening with the crypto scene locally in South Africa even though I want no part of it. When I say no part of it I do not want a local foot print for obvious reasons. Luno is the leading centralized trading platform in South Africa and I avoid it at all costs due to their direct involvement with the South African Receiver Services also known as the tax man.
Over the last 12 months the Luno user base has grown by another 500K users which is decent growth now having a user base of 6.3 million. If you consider a high percentage of the working population is unemployed 6.3 million represents roughly 60% of those employed.
I would guess the majority of those who have an account on Luno not necessarily use the exchange for trading and this is used more as an onramp to move to Binance or another off shore exchange. The problem is the altcoin selection is limited and even those listed are not all available depending on where you reside. The 6.3 million accounts does show a high percentage of crypto investors though as a large percentage of the population live well below the bread line. I know the majority of illegal migrants from neighboring countries are involved with crypto and are very clued up. This is how they send money home to family and relatives avoiding any service fees with other companies offering those money services.
How many times have we heard the same story about keeping investors safe and even though I agree with this sentiment I don't buy it. When you are in crypto you need and want to capitalize on any opportunity so when a particular token is not listed you will move to an exchange that suits your needs.
Luno has started offering staking, but again the APR they offer does not match what is found elsewhere. USDC has an APR on Luno of 3.5% which when looking around using Bitcompare this is actually quite low.
Luno also offers US Stocks through XShares which I am sure would be more popular as an offering than their crypto offerings. 19 000 accounts have XShares so it is small but these would be kept on the Luno exchange.
I mentioned Luno only being used as an on and off ramp for crypto due to everyone I know who has used Luno moves their Bitcoin or Ethereum immediately to another exchange. Those with no idea will most likely buy and just hold on their Luno wallet. Those that have moved their crypto off shore will they move it back via the same route if they find an alternative I guess not knowing you will be taxed immediately when funds return.
I think what is good to see is the number of people in SA who these days have a crypto account with the split being 64% male 36% women. Ages 25-34 (37%), 35-44 (26%) and the age group of 55+ is now increasing. These are interesting stats especially the 55+ age group growing as those are the investors who should have more to invest and are possibly protecting their retirement. A depreciating local currency will force you to invest in other areas and hopefully they have woken up.