Akon Announces Plan to Launch Cryptocurrency Akoin and Build World's First Crypto City

Grammy-nominated artist, producer, and entrepreneur, Aliaune Damala Badara Thiam, better known as Akon, recently announced the launch of his own cryptocurrency Akoin.

Akon shared plans to build a first of its kind, 100% crypto-based city in Africa.

No stranger to taking on significant projects, Akon launched Akon Lightning Africa in 2014 - an initiative that provides electricity to fifteen different countries in Africa including Senegal, Mali, and Sierre Leone.

Despite his company's success, Akon spoke about some of the project's challenges in an interview in January 2018.

According to Akon, the biggest obstacle to providing electricity to more Africans was the difficulty in securing proper financing, due to developed Western nations owning much of Africa's resources and the continent deemed a "High-risk investment" by traditional financiers.

By choosing to launch a cryptocurrency, Akon demonstrates a willingness to diverge from traditional means of finance and accelerate Africa's development by embracing an emerging yet mostly unproven technology.

Once finished, Akon's Crypto City will "Blend leading Smart City designs with a blank canvas for cryptonizing our daily human and business exchanges," inventing a new way of existence.

Though Akon's goals are indeed lofty, Senegal may be the perfect location to try such as an ambitious project.

If the eCFA is successful in Senegal, the plan is to roll out the eCFA to the other 14 countries in West and Central Africa that use the CFA franc.

With its open mind and ambitious plans, Senegal may become the first country to establish a full crypto city through Akoin.