In an unprecedented move within the crypto industry, Electroneum has become the world's first cryptocurrency to enable electricity top-ups with ETN in four African countries – Gambia, Senegal, Nigeria and Mali – from within their mobile app at a tap of a button.
In June 2019, market researcher and analyst Lisa Schulte said, cryptocurrency "is not ready for everyday transactions. It needs more time to shift toward a functional currency than an investment." However, Electroneum is proving it is an industry leader as its ETN token’s use cases continue to grow.
With 19% of the world's population currently using cryptocurrency and 14% more saying they are prepared to start using digital assets, most blockchain startups are falling behind in the race to create real-world use cases using their virtual currencies.
Ahead of the curve
However, Electroneum has demonstrated to be ahead of the curve, and in only 30 months since its November 2017 launch, their ETN token can be used to top up mobile phone airtime and data in over 140 countries from within the Electroneum app. Also, nearly 1,800 merchants and service providers around the world accept ETN payments.
"Electroneum is one of a handful of cryptocurrencies that are building an ecosystem with real-world use cases, adding value for more than 2.5 million verified app users," said Richard Ells, CEO, and Founder of the award-winning cryptocurrency. "Today, over 156,200 mobile top-ups have taken place from within our mobile app."
Electricity top-ups in four countries
As part of their ground-breaking strategy to spark further adoption, Electroneum has enabled electricity top-ups in Nigeria, Gambia, Senegal, and Mali. "We plan to expand electricity top-ups to more countries gradually," said Mr. Ells.
Electricity top-ups from within the Electroneum app are very easy. You go to the bottom where it says top-ups. Select electricity top-up and enter the number of the electricity meter and enter a cell phone number where you want to receive notification that your transaction has been completed.
If you have relatives or friends in either of those four African countries, you can top up their electricity meter by following the previous instructions.
"Today, Electroneum has more real-world adoption than virtually every other cryptocurrency project out there," Mr. Ells highlighted. "Really, outside the top five or ten cryptocurrency projects, we are right up there. We have real-world adoption, unlike 99% of the cryptocurrencies."
AnyTask now makes more sense
With mobile top-ups becoming more prevalent amongst Electroneum app users, the enablement of electricity top-ups and the launch of ETN Everywhere with over 830 brick and mortar and online shops where you can spend ETN, earning ETN on AnyTask makes more sense.
AnyTask – the global freelance platform powered by Electroneum – is still in its soft launch phase. In only just over three months, over 270,000 people have registered to the website as either sellers or buyers. Freelancers have listed over 3,400 tasks in dozens of categories, including video editing, whiteboard animations, tech support, website design, and so much more.
The freelance platform is the first of its kind and the only one that does not charge freelancers any commissions, nor does it require them to have a bank account or PayPal. That unlocks the global digital economy to billions of people who are either unbanked or underserved.
Making a living on AnyTask
"Our next step is to roll-out a targeted marketing campaign aimed at making a living off of AnyTask a reality," he said "Our first new goal, is to enable that reality for one thousand people, then 5,000 and then 10,000. No other crypto is head in this direction, so this makes us unique."
Freelancing is particularly exceptional for people in Africa, the most impoverished region in the world. Nigerian AnyTaskers have expressed how significant AnyTask is for them.
Unemployment in Nigeria is increasing and currently stands at 30% of the population. The minimum monthly wage is about US$80, and access to the global digital economy is difficult because of the reputation Nigerian email fraudsters have created.
Freelancing in Nigeria
"Most freelance platforms, including Fiverr, require PayPal as a way to get paid, but PayPal does not allow Nigerians to receive funds because of all the email scams," said Joseph Ogechukwu. He goes by QikFingers on AnyTask. "And so, we are faced with the difficulty of finding others in other countries to get our payment for us."
Mr. Ogechukwu has anxiously been waiting for electricity top-ups from within the Electroneum mobile app.
Ibrahim Adams, or Tecnoidinc on AnyTask, said that apart from that, he does not pay 20% fees on freelance work he sells on Fiverr, which means he has more income to pay for mobile top-ups and now electricity.
"I find paying for airtime and data from within the ETN mobile app very convenient," he said. "I have been looking forward to electricity top-ups because, at my home, we pay as you go."
Electroneum has disrupted the already disruptive crypto and blockchain industry and has concrete strategies to ensure sustainable growth.
"We have achieved many outstanding objectives in the 30 months since our launch after a record-breaking ICO by participants with 120,000. However, we have many years of hard work ahead of us as we aim to be in a well-deserved position among the top 10 cryptocurrencies," concluded Richard Ells.