”Who is Binance” – Defi promotion with AFCON
Written by Young Eta.
Now that Afcon is over, let’s take a look at the factors that shaped what could be Africa’s largest marketing strategy for decentralized finance.
“Who is Binance”
Binance is a blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency exchange platform that has decided to collaborate with the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as an official sponsor of the Total Energies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in 2021. The global brand brought its technology to the African football event, which began on January 9 and concluded on February 6, 2022.
This sponsorship agreement establishes Binance as the exclusive cryptocurrency and blockchain platform for the AFCON 2021 tournament, as well as the company’s first sponsorship of a large-scale footballing event. This is a massive marketing platform, and we can’t think of a better way than to use AFCON, a tournament that conveniently kicks off Africa’s sports calendar. And we all know that football is the most popular sport in Africa, with such a stronghold on the continent that it unites its entire nations.
Binance also capitalized on advertising more aspects of their campaigns by partnering with CAF as the official partner of the “Binance Assist of the Day,” “Binance Assist of the Week,” and “Binance Assist of the Tournament” to drive marketing further to viewers and was also promoted across CAF’s official social media channels including TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
CAF’s General Secretary, stated, “I am delighted to welcome Binance as an official sponsor of the AFCON tournament this year.” Binance will further connect with its users and the African community through football as a result of its partnership with CAF. CAF is ready to embrace blockchain-based technology and its implications for African football development in the future. I am confident that we can take African football to a new level together with Binance.”
The numbers game
The Total Energies Africa Cup of Nations got underway at Yaounde’s Olembe Stadium, with Cameroon taking on Burkina Faso. With over 160 nations live broadcasting the tournament and an audience of over 300 million viewers, games were played across six venues in five Cameroonian cities.
One can Imagine the number of African viewers googling “who is Binance” after seeing it on their television screens and then learning the fundamentals of decentralized finance and cryptocurrency. Binance’s strategy was simple but effective: focus on Africa’s most popular sport to drive crypto and blockchain adoption and provide greater access to financial services for the continent’s unbanked.
Binance has provided free crypto education classes to over 541,000 Africans since 2020 as part of its mission to drive blockchain adoption and increase access to financial services for the world’s unbanked. Topics range from user protection to building a career in blockchain. “With a population of 1.2 billion Africans and the prevalence of blockchain technology and its use cases, we believe the African continent could lead the future of the blockchain industry,” said Yi He, co-founder, and CMO of Binance. We will continue to push for the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency so that more people can understand crypto and Binance.”
According to Chainalysis, a blockchain data platform, Africa is the third fastest-growing region for crypto adoption, increasing by more than 1,200 percent in terms of value received from July 2020 to June 2021. One trend driving crypto usage in Africa is the growth of peer-to-peer (P2P) cryptocurrency exchanges, where users trade directly with one another. Africa leads the world in the use of P2P usage, accounting for 1.2 percent of total African transaction volume and 2.6 percent of total Bitcoin volume.
Africans use this type of trading to protect remittances and cross-border businesses from high transfer fees and the risks of weakening currencies. Besides running an exchange platform, Binance has a P2P platform known as Binance B2P. Binance may also be looking to tap into Africa’s youthful and Internet-savvy demographic. Sports could be a lever for crypto adoption as many sports fans are already using their smartphones for sports betting. A 2017 GeoPoll survey found that up to 54% of sub-Saharan African youth between 17 and 35 years have engaged in sports betting. This demographic might be an easier target market for crypto adoption.
Africans use this type of trading to protect remittances and cross-border businesses from high transfer fees and currency volatility. Binance, in addition to its exchange platform, operates a peer-to-peer (P2P) platform called Binance B2P.
Binance may also be interested in tapping into Africa’s young and Internet-savvy demographic. Because many sports fans already use their smartphones for sports betting, sports could be a driving force for cryptocurrency adoption. According to a 2017 GeoPoll survey, up to 54% of sub-Saharan African youth aged 17 to 35 have participated in sports betting. This demographic may be a more accessible target market for cryptocurrency adoption.
Decentralized finance projections in Africa
As Africa’s young population grows, so does its need for financial inclusion. Banking is critical for poverty reduction and long-term growth. The traditional banking system, on the other hand, has failed to bridge the gap. As a result, mobile money and open banking platforms have quickly taken over the majority of banking roles.
A large proportion of the adult African population is unbanked. According to Statista, the continent had 298 million adults with bank accounts in 2017. By 2022, the number of banked adults is expected to reach 456 million, accounting for roughly 38% of the continent’s population. According to the United Nations, three-quarters of the continent’s population is under the age of 35. Mobile phone technology and data have been used by the financial sector to create efficient domestic payment and financing systems. Introducing decentralized finance platforms to the continent’s largely youthful population has the potential to accelerate the region’s financial development and usher in a new paradigm.
Foresight
Africa is unique. There are several banking issues on the continent, which can be turned into an opportunity. The continent’s incremental steps toward financial innovation can center on Defi rather than the continent’s aging banking and ATM systems. Decentralized finance applications will provide every person in need of banking with the benefits of trust, transparency, and ease of access.
These platforms have fewer errors than traditional banking systems because they do not rely heavily on people to run them. The platform’s bureaucracy is reduced, and users can interact with it without difficulty. Cryptocurrency platforms are Africa’s future. They will make affordable seamless cross-border decentralized finance a reality.
