From payment processing to transportation, residents of Akon City will be able to secure their daily necessities with cryptocurrency
Akon, the internationally known singer and songwriter, has provided additional details about Akon City, the crypto-powered urban development currently planned in Senegal.
Jon Karas, co-founder and president of the Akoin cryptocurrency, said Akon City will be designed to give residents practical, everyday access to cryptocurrency and related technologies, with the potential for those systems to expand across the African continent.
Karas said the team intends to work with government authorities to implement blockchain technology across a range of standard city functions, including tax collection, import duties and trade-related processes.
He also noted that the city’s autonomous transportation concept will draw inspiration from the systems developed in Switzerland’s Crypto Valley.
“You can get on and off the tram and pay with your crypto-related card with an infinitesimal piece of a Bitcoin [or altcoin],” he explained.
The CEO added that residents of Akon City will be able to use Akoin to pay for basic utilities, taxes and business licenses.
“Our belief is that blockchain tools and services will be one of the key things that will help Africa rise in the coming decades. The services people can access through this technology have the potential to produce lasting and significant change,” Karas said.
Akoin’s whitepaper, published in March, defines the token as a utility currency for the African market that facilitates “atomic” swaps between cryptocurrencies, fiat currencies and mobile phone credit. The platform is planned to be built on the Stellar (XLM) network.
“Akoin is a cryptocurrency powered by a blockchain-based ecosystem of tools and services designed for entrepreneurs in the rising economies of Africa and beyond. Akoin’s mission is to unlock the potential of the world’s largest and fastest-growing workforce by creating learning, earning, spending and saving opportunities across Africa and other emerging markets,” the whitepaper states.
The Akon City project is backed by a $6 billion construction contract with KE International, a US engineering firm, which has already secured $4 billion to fund the first two phases. Construction on the first phase is scheduled to begin early next year and continue through 2023, with the entire project estimated to span roughly a decade.
Akon, the founder of Akoin, is a celebrity and philanthropist. He is a multi-platinum selling artist, producer and entrepreneur who has received Grammy nominations.