On the 4th of June, the Federal Government of Nigeria through its Ministry of Information and Culture announced that it had suspended the operations of popular microblogging and social media platform, Twitter in Nigeria.
The announcement comes days after the social media giant took down a tweet by the country’s President Muhammadu Buhari for violating its rules.
In the deleted tweet, the President threatened to punish secessionist groups in a part of the country, this led to a torrent of internet outrage in Africa's most populous country.
Twitter Public Policy team said the tweet violated its abusive behavior policy and subsequently removed the post and temporarily froze the president’s account for twelve hours.
In a retaliation act, the government announced an indefinite suspension of Twitter's operation in the country. In the statement, the Nigerian government said the decision was due to the "persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria's corporate existence".
The government also vowed to arrest and prosecute anyone found using the platform through backdoor means.
The announcement came as a huge shock to millions of people across the country, especially the youth.
There is an estimated 40 million Nigerians on social media, most of who use these social media platforms for their businesses, to share and access information, engage in discourse, network, and share opportunities.
Read about the top African countries adopting crypto in 2021.
The Effect on Nigeria's Crypto Space
Nigeria's crypto sector is very huge. The country continues to rank among the major hubs for crypto activities globally.
According to a survey by Statista, 32% of Nigerians indicated they used or own cryptocurrency, the highest proportion of any of the 74 countries surveyed.
Twitter plays a significant role in cryptocurrency education and enlightenment globally. The suspension could disrupt the momentum cryptocurrency has generated in Nigeria and potentially hinder the crypto adoption rate in the country.
Last year, Nigeria emerged as Africa's largest P2P cryptocurrency marketplace and second only to the United States in crypto trading volume — facilitating more than $400 million worth of crypto transactions last year.
Recent data also suggest that over $200 million worth of crypto transactions are completed per month across all channels in Nigeria — about 50% of these trades are done on informal channels including social media platforms such as Twitter, Telegram, and WhatsApp, where people buy bitcoin in Nigeria.
The suspension of Twitter operations in the country could lead to a significant decrease in cryptocurrency trading volume as the majority of Nigerian crypto traders rely on these social media platforms including Twitter to facilitate P2P crypto trading ever since the Central Bank cryptocurrency ban in the country.
Impact of Twitter on Cryptocurrency Penetration
The importance of Twitter in the cryptocurrency space cannot be over-exaggerated. In many ways, the platform helps to support the popularity and goals of cryptocurrency.
Twitter serves as the voice of the crypto world and has been recognized as the de facto home of the crypto community.
Crypto Twitter is the go-to section that crypto enthusiasts can interact, get insights and perspective from some of the greatest minds in the crypto space.
Twitter also serves as a platform for those who are interested in cryptocurrency to learn, share knowledge, ask questions, and stay in the know about current happenings and trends in the crypto world.
Cryptocurrency and Blockchain start-ups also make use of Twitter to build communities and educate people on their products, share updates and handle customer support and alerts.
The suspension of Twitter operations in Nigeria has the potential of affecting the large community of crypto traders in the country most of who rely on the platform to stay up-to-date on industry news and updates, trading signals and tips, trending news, and easy access to a lot of key players in the crypto space.
Furthermore, the continued suspension could also see Nigerians being left behind in the global fast-paced crypto world, losing out on crypto-related jobs, and credibility in the global crypto space.
Alternative Platforms for Cryptocurrency News and Tips
The rapidly changing condition of the crypto space together with the fast-paced, action-packed crypto market makes it extremely important for traders to always stay updated on happenings.
Aside from Twitter, there are lots of platforms where traders can get in-demand and impactful news surrounding cryptocurrency.
Below are the top 5 Twitter alternatives to get cryptocurrency news and tips:
● CoinTelegraph
CoinTelegraph is undoubtedly one of the biggest crypto news websites in the space. Created in 2013, the platform has since risen to prominence among its peer due to the quality and educative nature of its content.
CoinTelegraph is well-known for its delivery of insightful and illustrative content with in-depth analytics and comprehensive price charts.
The platform also publishes a wide range of articles on Blockchain, cryptocurrency, and fintech.
As a plus, the platform is available in 8 different languages for readers worldwide.
● CoinDesk
CoinDesk is a platform built for the next generation of crypto investors.
The news site aims to inform, educate and connect the global crypto community through news, events, and education.
This website built its popularity through delivering top-notch educative content where newbies can learn all aspects of cryptocurrency, blockchain, and the industry in general.
CoinDesk is also known for creating the Bitcoin Price Index — a real-time price reference rate designed to track the performance of Bitcoin.
● Bitcoin Magazine
Created in 2012, Bitcoin Magazine is one of the first newsprints dedicated to covering everything Bitcoin.
The platform is rated high due to its unique approach to delivering news content. Readers get to see a different approach to everything going on in the market.
Though the platform started as a dedicated Bitcoin news site, it has since upgraded and has started to cover other cryptocurrencies.
It fills readers with top-rated cryptocurrency reviews, price analysis, best practices, tips, and many more.
● Remitano Forum
Apart from being an exchange to buy bitcoin, Remitano Forum serves as the go-to option for crypto news and information.
At Remitano Forum, readers get up-to-date industry news and tips, reviews, opinion pieces, and reports on transformation in the crypto world.
The Remitano forum features knowledge articles, daily news, price analysis, platform updates, crypto games, competitions, and lots more.
Reddit is a social news aggregation and discussion website.
The platform is a network of communities based on users’ interests. Looking for a specific topic or area?
There's a high chance that you will find that it has its subreddits and communities where you can read and discuss related to that topic you're searching for.
There is a large crypto community on Reddit where you can find subreddits for different crypto projects.
On Reddit, conversations are encouraged, allowing for different perspectives to be shared.
You get unfiltered reviews, the community opinion about a project, industry news, timely updates, and many more. Reddit definitely makes for a great news source.
Other noteworthy additions include Medium, Crypto Podcasts, YouTube, Telegram, and Discord communities.
#FeaturedbyRemitano