Coinbase has partnered with Yellow Card to expand access to its products to 20 African countries.
On January 11, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase unveiled its partnership with Yellow Card, the largest and most licensed Stablecoin on- and off-ramp on the African continent, to expand access of its products to emerging economies across the African continent.
“Our new partnership […] will help usher in the future of money by giving millions of users access to USDC and fast, reliable and cheaper transactions on our decentralized and open L2 database through Coinbase and Yellow products Card,” Coinbase said in a statement on Jan. 11.
Expansion to Emerging Economies
Coinbase will expand access to its products through this new partnership with Yellow Card, starting with 20 African countries, including Nigeria, South Africa, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania. Both companies will provide millions of African users with access to USD Coin (USDC) on Coinbase Wallet and the Yellow Card app.
Coinbase noted that many of these countries have high inflation and rely on remittances, so it hopes the partnership with Yellow Card will offer a more economically viable way to transact in the region.
“Many of these markets also need economic opportunities for younger-than-average populations,” Coinbase added, noting that Africa is “by far” the youngest continent.
Coinbase and Yellow Card hope to “increase economic freedom” in many of these countries, whose economies have suffered from high inflation and dependence on remittances and the lack of a modern financial system highly sought after by younger generations. As they state in their press release:
“Young people are more likely to recognize the benefits of cryptocurrencies: Nore than seven in 10 cryptocurrency owners worldwide (72%) are under 34 years old.”
Plan to Make the Global Financial System “More Accessible”
To open access to a more modern and global financial system, they will facilitate access to USDC on Base for cheaper fees and faster transactions than traditional transfers starting in February 2024.
In Coinbase Wallet, users will be able to purchase USDC directly from their Wallet Application, in addition to sending USDC without any charge to messaging applications and social networks, as they noted:
“Coinbase wallet users will be able to easily send usdc without fee on any platform where they can share a link, including messaging apps like WhatsApp, iMessage and Telegram, as well as via popular social media and email apps.”
Users of the Yellow Card platform can purchase USDC on Base and transfer via the L2 blockchain, also benefiting from cheaper fees and easy access to the stablecoin. Chris Maurice, co-founder and CEO of Yellow Card, expressed his excitement in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter). Maurice is optimistic about the future of the partnership and the solutions it could bring to African people and businesses.
The partnership aims to protect the savings of users across the African continent from “unstable currencies” and economic volatility due to high inflation rates of up to 18.5%. They will offer lower shipping rates, with the maximum rate being 2%.
In addition to offering access to the global financial system to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by allowing merchants to set up a Wallet in less than a minute and expand their growth.
The Coinbase and Yellow Card partnership will expand solutions for people and businesses in 20 African countries by making the global financial system more accessible.
By Audy Castaneda
