Central African Republic’s Digital Currency Ambitions Spark Security Fears Ahead of December 28 Election
New research sounds the alarm on a potential digital Trojan horse.
A fresh study highlights critical vulnerabilities in the Central African Republic's cryptocurrency initiatives. Analysts warn that murky regulations and rushed implementation could open the door for foreign bad actors.
The Digital Backdoor
With a pivotal national election scheduled for December 28, the timing couldn't be more sensitive. The report suggests that poorly defined digital asset frameworks might be exploited to target state-owned assets. It's a modern twist on an old threat—using financial innovation as a cover for asset seizure.
Balancing Innovation and Sovereignty
The situation underscores the tightrope walk for nations embracing crypto. While digital currencies promise financial inclusion and modernization, they also demand ironclad security and legal clarity. The Central African Republic's experience serves as a cautionary tale for other sovereign states.
It's the ultimate finance sector irony: a tool built for decentralization being used to centralize control—just not by the intended government. Sometimes, the most disruptive technology isn't the code, but the loophole it creates.
Sango Coin collapses with missing investor money
The first program, called the Sango Coin project, was supposed to turn Bangui into a modern city and fix national roads and buildings. Plans included giving citizenship, online residency, and land to people who invested money.
But the Constitutional Court stopped these offerings in August 2022, shortly after the program started. The project failed badly, selling just 10% of its goal of 210 million tokens in one year, worth under 2 million euros, according to GI-TOC.
The Sango Project wrote on X in April that it wouldn’t keep going as before and a “new direction” was coming, but gave no details.
What happened to the money people put in remains unknown, the study said.
$CAR coin linked to opaque land sales
The second program was launched in February, called $CAR, a meme coin designed to get attention worldwide and help the country grow. These coins are known for wild price changes and often use popular brands or internet fads.
The launch hit problems right away when its internet address was shut down hours after starting. Since then, $CAR has been used to purchase digital land, but nobody knows if those sales added any money to the national budget, GI-TOC reported.
The study warned that government plans to expand the program to mining rights for diamonds, gold, and oil, with almost no checks on who buyers are or safeguards against money cleaning, could sell off natural resources to international criminals.
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