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The Central African Republic’s push into crypto has deepened elite control and exposed the country to “foreign criminal organizations,” according to a recent report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC).
In the <a href="https://globalinitiative.net/analysis/behind-the-blockchain-cryptocurrency-and-criminal-capture-in-the-central-african-republic/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">report</a> titled “Behind the blockchain: Cryptocurrency and criminal capture in the Central African Republic,” researchers claimed that the CAR’s crypto ventures, from adopting Bitcoin (<a href="/bitcoin-price" rel="noopener noreferrer">BTC</a>) as legal tender to launching Sango Coin and the CAR memecoin, were rolled out in a fragile nation with limited electricity, internet access and 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 said, arguing that the programs were “tailored more to the interests of foreign investors than to the needs of its own population.”
The report specifically criticized a July 2023 law allowing the tokenization of national resources such as oil, gold, timber and land, claiming that it risks undermining the country’s sovereignty.
<h2 id="car-reverses-bitcoin-legal-tender-status-after-pushback">CAR reverses Bitcoin legal tender status after pushback</h2>
In April 2022, CAR <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/the-central-african-republic-reportedly-passes-a-bill-to-regulate-crypto-use" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">made Bitcoin legal tender</a>, becoming the second country to do so after El Salvador. However, the country repealed the legislation in March 2023 after <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/is-the-imf-shutting-the-door-prematurely-on-bitcoin-as-legal-tender" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">significant pressure from</a> the regional monetary union, the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/how-africans-are-using-stablecoins-to-survive-inflation" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">From Nairobi to Lagos: How Africans are using stablecoins to survive inflation</a>
“The initiative was fundamentally unrealistic,” the GI-TOC said. “With just 15.7% of the population connected to electricity,” fewer than 40% holding mobile subscriptions and a GDP per capita of $467, most citizens lacked the infrastructure and resources to trade in digital currency, the researchers said.
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 <img alt="CAR’s crypto push fueled ‘state capture’ by elites, criminal networks: Report" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-12/019b2bf6-b0ff-7273-a896-294dce79fdd6.PNG" title="">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">
 How CAR’s crypto projects progressed. Source: <a href="https://globalinitiative.net/analysis/behind-the-blockchain-cryptocurrency-and-criminal-capture-in-the-central-african-republic/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">The GI-TOC</a>
 </figcaption>
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The report also claimed that President Faustin-Archange Touadéra was “surrounded by crypto enthusiasts, pro-Russian businesspeople and controversial business magnates.” The report cited examples of individuals <a href="https://eia.org/press-releases/20200603-cashing-in-on-chaos-pr/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">linked</a> to alleged illegal timber trafficking and <a href="https://www.businessincameroon.com/finance/2605-12578-emile-parfait-simb-promoter-of-liyeplimal-arrested-for-cryptocurrency-scam" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">associated </a>with multiple fraud cases and convictions.
At its most severe, the report said the initiatives appear “designed to enrich a narrow circle of insiders while opening new channels for foreign influence and transnational organized crime at the expense of the wider population.”
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/circle-onafriq-partner-to-cut-africa-payment-costs-with-usdc" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Circle taps Onafriq to cut Africa’s cross-border payment costs with USDC</a>
<h2 id="car-s-crypto-projects-fail-to-gain-momentum">CAR’s crypto projects fail to gain momentum</h2>
The GI-TOC also noted the poor performance of CAR’s crypto initiatives. In 2022, CAR <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/central-african-republic-to-launch-official-crypto-hub-sango" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">announced the launch</a> of the country’s first major crypto initiative, Sango, aimed at <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/central-african-republic-expands-sango-project-to-land-resource-tokenization" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">tokenizing natural resources</a> and attracting crypto investment. However, according to the GI-TOC, Sango Coin sold less than 10% of its target supply.
The country’s other major crypto project was <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/car-central-african-republic-memecoin-explained" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">the CAR memecoin</a>, which saw extreme volatility and even encountered technical issues. CAR is currently trading at around $0.004105, down by more than 93% over the past year, <a href="https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/central-african-republic-meme/usd" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">according</a> to CoinGecko.
Magazine:<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/2026-pragmatic-privacy-crypto-canton-zcash-ethereum-foundation/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> 2026 is the year of pragmatic privacy in crypto — Canton, Zcash and more</a>

CAR’s crypto push fueled ‘state capture’ by elites, criminal networks: Report

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