Timbuktu Chronicles
Emily Alpert writes In the LA Times:
Recently:If you've heard of Bitcoin, you might be a computer geek. The virtual money aspires to become a universal currency that doesn't depend on governments or banks.
image courtesy of MIT Tech Review
Cutting out the banks results in cheaper transactions, Bitcoin backers say. Online payments pass from person to person without using a bank as the middleman. And unlike electronic payments with ordinary currency, governments can't halt Bitcoin payments, an idea that appeals to libertarians.
German software developer and Bitcoin exchange consultant Rudiger Koch (of Intersango) recently at pitched the idea in Nigeria, arguing that Bitcoin has advantages for African countries. Bitcoin has no inflation tax, unlike ordinary cash. It could be spent and shared using cellphones, which are ubiquitous in much of Africa. Cellphone systems that let people transfer money by text message are already used in Kenya. And as the value of Bitcoin increases, Koch argues, Africa would get an infusion of money that could be used to bankroll government investment to provide infrastructure and stimulate the economy.More here
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