Central African Republic’s Crypto Ambitions Entrenched Elites, Invited Foreign Criminal Influence

Researchers from the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOG) have accused the Central African Republic's government of exploiting ordinary citizens to push for cryptocurrency in order to further its own political agenda and support criminal activities.

In their report titled “Behind the Blockchain: Cryptocurrency and Criminal Capture in the Central African Republic,” the researchers have argued that the Central African Republic government has forcefully continued its foray into digital assets despite the fragile environment which struggles with a shortage of electricity, internet access and financial oversight.

“An impoverished population, exposed to mass executions, torture and gang rape, with limited access to electricity, mobile phones and the internet, cannot engage in crypto investments in any meaningful way,”

The report also boldly asserted that the Central African Republic's government seems to design its crypto programs to the interest of foreign investors over the needs of its own population.

The GI-TOC has raised the policy back in July 2023 as an example, where the country authorized a law that demanded the tokenization of the country's natural resources, from oil, gold, timber, and land.

Researchers warned that such measures could undermine national sovereignty and expand access for foreign actors seeking to profit from CAR’s assets.

Bitcoin Legal Tender Reversed After International Pressure

CAR became the second country in the world after El Salvador to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in April 2022, a move widely criticized by international organizations including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC).

The GI-TOC had called the whole initiative "fundamentally unrealistic", citing how only 15.7% of the country's population have access to electricity and fewer than 40% use mobile phones. With a GDP per capita of just $467, the report said few citizens could realistically engage in digital currency trading.

Following intense backlash, the country reversed the legislation in March 2023.

The report also alleged that President Faustin-Archange Touadéra is “surrounded by crypto enthusiasts, pro-Russian businesspeople, and controversial magnates,” including figures linked to illegal timber trafficking and previous fraud convictions.

At its most critical, the report concluded that CAR’s crypto policies were “designed to enrich a narrow circle of insiders while opening new channels for foreign influence and organized crime.” Ironically, most of these initiatives all struggle to takeoff.

The CAR’s flagship project, Sango Coin, aimed to tokenize national resources and attract global blockchain investment. However, GI-TOC data suggests the token sold less than 10% of its intended supply, signaling weak investor confidence.

A second initiative, the CAR memecoin, has faced technical challenges and extreme volatility, currently trading at around $0.0041, down over 93% in the past year, according to CoinGecko.

Despite early aspirations to use crypto as a tool for financial inclusion, analysts say the CAR’s digital-asset experiment has instead become a cautionary tale — illustrating the risks of deploying blockchain technology in countries lacking institutional capacity, regulatory oversight, and infrastructure.