The World Bank has expressed concerns over a plan by the Central African Republic to set up a crypto hub, weeks after the nation became the second country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender.<\/p>\n
The move comes after President Faustin Archange Touadera tweeted last week that the country had set up its first crypto initiative dubbed \u201cSANGO\u201d to steer the county\u2019s bitcoin agenda.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe formal economy is no longer an option,\u201d<\/em> President Touadera said in a statement following TANGO\u2019s launch on Monday. \u201cAn impenetrable bureaucracy is keeping us stuck in systems that do not give a chance to be competitive.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n According to the SANGO website, the initiative was sanctioned by the national assembly and supported by both the CAR and the president. The initiative seeks to create a crypto-economic zone as well as \u201ccreate a dedicated legal framework for cryptocurrencies before the end of 2022.\u201d<\/p>\n Most notably, the plan mentions a $35 million development fund approved on May 5 by the world bank for the digitization of the public sector. Whereas the plan specifically states that \u201cthe world bank is not part of the crypto initiative,\u201d the global lender responded after the suggestion that the CAR could use the approved funds to forerun its crypto initiative.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe World Bank is not supporting \u2018Sango: The First Crypto Initiative Project,\u201d<\/em> the lender said in an emailed response to Bloomberg, noting that the $35 million digital governance loan was \u201cnot related to any crypto initiatives.\u201d Instead, it was intended to improve CAR\u2019s public financial management system through funding projects such as the digitization of tax collection and salary payments systems.<\/p>\n The world bank also criticized CAR\u2019s government for downplaying the need to involve relevant financial institutions in its crypto plan.<\/p>\n