Sentiment and thematic trends in african cryptocurrency literature: a mini review

Abstract

Cryptocurrencies are alternative mediums of exchange to traditional fiat currencies, such as the dollar or the euro. A typical cryptocurrency is digital-only, is stored in distributed ledger technology (notably Blockchain), and conducts its transactions in a decentralized network system. While there exists a considerable amount of literature addressing the roles of cryptocurrencies and other decentralized assets in developed economies, there is a lack of effort in discovering the role of these assets in the developing world. To contribute to a holistic understanding of cryptocurrencies and their values/impacts, this review examines the use of cryptocurrencies in Africa, identifying key trends and sentiment over time. Following a systematic process of reviewing the literature, the authors identified 121 relevant papers on the subject. We found that in the early days, cryptocurrencies were primarily used to address specific financial challenges in Africa, such as high remittance costs and a large underbanked population. Later on, cryptocurrencies began to adopt additional roles, such as diversifying investment, and central bank digital currencies and other digital assets emerged as legitimate means of payment and financial services. Furthermore, using VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary and sEntiment Reasoner) sentiment analysis tool, we identified four critical periods in the development of cryptocurrencies in Africa and the associated sentiment regarding this type of asset from the literature. Our findings contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the development and main use of cryptocurrencies in Africa.