The Blockchain Africa Conference, organized by Bitcoin Events, will hold its 10th edition on 20 November 2024 in Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa. First launched as the Bitcoin Africa Conference in 2015 and later rebranded, the event has attracted over 9,500 attendees from 160 countries. It has become a key platform for showcasing innovations and developments in blockchain and cryptocurrency. ^[1][2][3]

Overview

The Blockchain Africa Conference features a lineup of international and local speakers, bringing together over 500 global participants. The event will provide insights, debates, and panel discussions on how blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies are influencing global business practices, with a particular focus on Africa. ^[1]

"The Blockchain Africa Conference serves as a dynamic platform to explore how blockchain can redefine financial inclusion, cross-border payments and remittances, identity management, health care and record-keeping, supply chain management, and environmental solutions across the continent while showcasing the groundbreaking innovations within the blockchain and cryptocurrency industries." ^[4]

The conference will explore transformative concepts, industry trends, market disruptors, and emerging technologies shaping the future marketplace. With a special emphasis on Africa, it will examine global trends, opportunities, and challenges for market participants looking to leverage blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies. ^[1][3]

Past conference themes have included "Beyond the Hype," "From Hype to Mainstream," and "Ready for Business?"^[1]

Key streams are:

• Blockchain-based use cases across both financial and non-financial industries
• Cryptocurrency/digital asset regulation
• Blockchain technology hurdles and challenges

The objectives are:

• To provide a contextual understanding of blockchain technology and the opportunities that it presents for Africa
• To deliver well-structured content that will meet the needs of different stakeholders and different industries
• To provide networking opportunities focused on creating business partnerships and collaborations that will create employment, drive economic growth, and catapult development.

The Blockchain Africa Conference is an event that captivates and educates a global audience as Bitcoin Events continues to educate the African community, spread awareness, and encourage networking within the space. Sponsors include Binance, Crypto Coffee, Tether, XAGO, Rainfin, IDATCO, etc. ^[1][2]

Speakers include Yele Badamosi, Stani Kulechov, Charles Hoskinson, Briana Marbury, Rene Reinsburg, Mariana Gospodinova, Junde Yu, Ben Zhou, Sandra Ro, Tone Rays, Chris Becker, Stefan Thomas, Brock Pierce, etc. ^[1]

Blockchain Africa Conference 2023

Blockchain Africa Conference 2023 was a hybrid event; in Johannesburg, South Africa, and virtually held on March 16-17, 2023. ^[5]

The theme of this 9th edition was ‘Ready for Business?’. The conference focused on the opportunities offered by blockchain technology and potential use cases globally and in Africa, both in the public and private sectors. ^[5]

Blockchain Africa Conference 2022

Bitcoin Events 2nd virtual and 8th annual edition of the Blockchain Africa Conference was hosted on the 17 and 18 March 2022. The conference attracted 1964 attendees from 113 countries and facilitated discussions on the exciting opportunities and developments taking place in the African and global blockchain ecosystem. ^[6]

The Blockchain Africa Conference 2022 came alongside the growing collective sentiment and increased adoption of blockchain technology. Many private and public organizations implemented the technology, leveraging it to develop robust, enterprise-ready solutions. As the industry matured, it became less susceptible to hype and speculation. ^[6]

Blockchain Africa Conference 2021

The 7th annual event for the Blockchain Africa Conference was held on March 18-19, 2021. The event attracted 5,729 attendees from over 160 countries and drew together a diverse group of delegates, featuring attendees hailing from a range of multiple industries and disciplines such as finance, payments, venture capital, government, and information technology. ^[7]

The theme of the year was “From Hype to Mainstream”, which illustrated the prevailing sentiment within blockchain technologies, with blockchain participants increasingly shifting away from initial experiments and towards the development of robust, enterprise-ready solutions.  The conference featured a series of world-class speakers to help elaborate on the current trends within the sector, including Charles Hoskinson, Founder of Cardano; Sandra Ro, CEO of Global Blockchain Business Council; Ben Zhou, Co-Founder and CEO of Bybit; Mariana Gospodinova, General Manager of EU Operations for Crypto.com; and Stani Kulechov, Founder and CEO of Aave. ^[7]

Blockchain Africa Conference 2020

The Blockchain Africa Conference 2020 was held on March 11–12, 2020 at Investec's office in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa. The conference was the sixth annual event hosted by Bitcoin Events, and was Africa's leading blockchain conference. The conference featured over 230 delegates and live streaming and covered a variety of topics, including Trade finance, Self-sovereign identity, Supply chain management, and Regulation. The conference's premier sponsors were Binance. ^[8]

Blockchain Africa Conference 2019

Held in Johannesburg at the Wanders Club on 28 February – 1 March 2019, and in Cape Town at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on 6th March 2019, the conference in Cape Town focused on how blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies can achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for economic growth and social inclusion by enabling and broadening access to a wide range of financial and other services, critical to the long-term reduction in poverty and achievement of economic growth in Africa. ^[9]

Speakers explored how this technology can be used in areas such as payments and remittances, identity, renewable energy, remittances, farming and agriculture, community currencies, provision and distribution of aid and support, impact data, decentralized business models, and global cryptocurrency economy. ^[9]

Discussions included current challenges with technology infrastructure and regulatory frameworks to achieve these goals. The conference looked at how blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies can enable and lay the groundwork for a sustainable, distributed, and shared future. ^[9]