Central African Republic adopts Bitcoin as official currency

The Central African Republic, which was marred by decades of conflict, became the first country in Africa and only the second in the world to adoptbitcoin as an official currency.

The government hasn't provided any details on the logistics of its vision ofBitcoin.

The SANGO initiative has a website on which interested investors can sign up to a waiting list.

President Faustin-Archange Touadera said in a statement on Monday that the formal economy is no longer an option.

An inexorable bureaucracy keeps us stuck in systems that don't give us a chance to be competitive. There was no indication when the investment hub would open or how it would operate.

The move to adoptBitcoin in a country where internet use is low and electricity unreliable has raised eyebrows among crypt experts, puzzled lawmakers and residents of the country, and drew words of caution from the International Monetary Fund.

Central Africa's regional banking regulator for the six-nation Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa also sent out a reminder about its ban on cryptocurrencies, stating that the prohibition was meant to ensure financial stability.

Many of its assets have fallen in value in recent months, with bitcoins down 39% in eight weeks and losing half of its value since a Nov. 10 peak of $69,000.