BitFury Group, the world’s leading Bitcoin Blockchain infrastructure provider and transaction processing company, has made an investment in BitPesa, one of Africa’s leading bitcoin payment platforms.

BitPesa is a universal bitcoin payment and trading platform that seeks to give the pan-African continent unfettered access to the benefits of the global economy. “Our mission is to make global transacting easier, especially for those who continue to face obstacles to financial growth,” said Valery Vavilov, CEO of BitFury. “A secure, transparent and trusted form of exchange is being made possible by BitPesa, and our investment will allow us to work together to leverage the innovative power of the Bitcoin Blockchain for the benefit of the entire pan-African continent.” The strategic investment was made by BitFury’s investment arm BitFury Capital.

Africa is seeing a rise in Bitcoin activity, with startups springing up continent-wide specialising in the cryptocurrency as digital currency offers a great way to reach the unbanked in Africa.

BitPesa allows individuals and businesses all over the world to quickly and securely send payments to and from Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, and Tanzania. The company accepts bitcoin and exchanges it for local African currencies, which are then deposited into African bank accounts or mobile money wallets. BitPesa also sells bitcoin in Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda, for those users who do not have access to other bitcoin exchanges.

BitPesa is licensed by the FCA as an Authorized Payment Institution, making it a more trusted solution than using informal brokers or cash agents, the traditional route in Africa for many people seeking to engage in exchange. BitPesa also uses bitcoin to exchange directly between African currency and other global currencies, reducing unnecessary and expensive dependence on using the U.S. dollar as a means of exchange.

“It has been great to have the support of the BitFury Group, who work extremely hard to build community amongst companies working with bitcoin, large and small,” said Elizabeth Rossiello, CEO of BitPesa. “Valery and his team have a long history working in frontier markets and nothing is more important to our team than an understanding and support of the work we do.”