A new study conducted by ConsenSys and YouGov has indicated that Nigeria ranked top in the level of crypto market awareness in Africa as well as Web3 global ranking.
The multi-country study aims to provide a global and regional view of the perceptions people have around cryptocurrencies, NFTs, Web3, blockchain, and the metaverse.
Also, the study also was conducted to understand people’s feelings about the current internet and whether or not recent centralized financial crypto company bankruptcies have affected the sector and to shed light on how different nations view cryptocurrencies and the larger Web3 ecosystem.
In the latest poll conducted by the two organizations, South Africa and Nigeria are also the two nations with the highest levels of Bitcoin awareness.
Similarly, the poll’s findings reflected that 99% of Nigerians and 98% of South Africans had a higher comprehension of Web3 compared to respondents from developed nations, including the UK, US, Japan, and Germany.
The study, which covered 15,158 participants from 15 countries, ranging from ages 18 to 65, further reflected that 70% of respondents from Nigeria claimed they were familiar with the fundamental ideas behind blockchain technology.
In addition, the ownership rates indicated high degree of cryptocurrency awareness among Nigerians, with 76% of the 1,001 respondents saying that they currently hold or have previously owned digital assets.
A further analysis of the study findings showed that the most widely interested crypto assets by Nigerian residents were Bitcoin and Ethereum, which were followed by BNB and Dogecoin, both of which were more popular among Nigerians than Tether.
This is even as the poll proved that 65% of Nigerian respondents rated crypto assets as a protection against monetary depreciation and hyperinflation, while 90% of respondents expressed interest in investing in cryptocurrencies within the next year.
The results of the study further indicated that despite regulatory concerns, 50% of respondents believe that regulators should create policies that promote participation while protecting investors, particularly since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) severed ties between crypto exchanges and local banks in February 2021.
In spite of the high level of awareness and expertise about cryptocurrency, the poll’s results showed that only 8% of respondents were educated with Web3, which offers decentralization, privacy, and digital ownership.
While responding to the questions raised in the poll, many Nigerian residents indicated their desire to have more control over their online identities and data protection, with 70% stating that they ought to benefit financially from the sale of their data.
