Chris Maurice: Chances and Challenges of Running a Bitcoin Exchange in Africa

In this episode I talk with Chris Maurice, the CEO and Founder of Yellow Card Financial, a Nigeria based bitcoin and crypto exchange. Chris started his entrepreneurial endeavors as a SEO consultant at the age of 16 after that he sold bitcoin on eBay and in the backrooms of Taco Bell restaurants. Chris tells us how he came up with founding an exchange and why he did that in Africa.

“Dollar can be extremely difficult to access in most countries, Dollar is a complete pain to handle whether you’re in the US or in any other country in the world. Dollar accounts are no fun. Bitcoin just really makes it so much easier to move value across the world.” – Chris Maurice

Topics

• How he found out about Bitcoin while managing his business in Pakistan
• Selling bitcoin on eBay with a 200% markup
• Selling bitcoin as college students at Taco Bell
• Why he went to Nigeria
• Starting a cryptoexchange
• Bitcoin in Zimbabwe
• Working with Alakanani Itireleng in Botswana
• Meeting Jack Dorsey the CEO of Twitter
• Bitcoins ability to move money across borders
• Challenges for using bitcoin in Africa
• High fees on the blockchain
• User experience of the Lightning Network
• Bitcoin as a store of value in Africa