Now is the time to understand bitcoin, the CAR's president says

Faustin-Archange Touadéra, president of the Central Republic of Africa (CAR), has encouraged people to seek an understanding of bitcoin and "its disruptive power to bring long-term prosperity." This comes weeks after the CAR adopted bitcoin as an official currency — the first African country to do so.

What was said?

• On June 14, Touadéra tweeted: "Understanding Bitcoin is crucial to [acknowledging] its disruptive power to bring long-term prosperity. Mathematics doesn't account for human emotions. Future generations will look behind at these very moments to our strength & unity in choosing the right path during hard times."
• On June 16, Touadéra sent a follow-up tweet, written in French (Google translated), saying: "We must learn from the past in order to build a better future. It is our duty to act in the interest of all our citizens, especially toward future generations. It is a sacred mission to move firmly on the path of modernity, to open the way for our children."

Why this matters

• Touadéra's message follows a multi-day slide in bitcoin prices.
• It's worth noting that the CAR president is himself a professor of mathematics.
• Math is a fundamental part of how bitcoin is generated and secured.
• On April 27, the CAR announced that it had adopted bitcoin as a legal tender.
• On May 24, the Touadéra-led CAR government launched its official crypto hub dubbed "Sango."
• Through Sango, the CAR intends to tokenize access to its rich mineral resources for global investors, an official document shows.
• The country estimates that it has $285 billion worth of diamond reserves and $60 billion worth of gold reserves.
• The CAR generated an estimated $2.4 billion in GDP
• Experts believe that the central African country's interest in bitcoin has more to do with geopolitics than economics as the country seeks to free itself from French dominance.
• African governments are beginning to warm up to digital assets and their potential economic benefits.
• Three other central African nations — Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville) — are working with The Open Network (TON), a layer-1 blockchain, to launch regionalized stablecoins.