Asian Tech Press (OCT 26) -- eNaira, a digital currency issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria, has officially gone live, making Nigeria the first country in Africa to launch a digital currency.

On October 25, local time, Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari inaugurated eNaira at the presidential house together with the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, to officially announce the launch of the country's digital currency.

Nigeria's digital currency eNaira name from the country's legal tender Naira, the digital currency and Naira have the same fiat currency status and will always be exchanged at a ratio of 1:1.

A statement released by the Central Bank of Nigeria on the 24th said, "eNaira marks an important step forward in the development of the currency, and the Central Bank of Nigeria is committed to ensuring that eNaira is available to all like the entity Naira currency."

eNaira is a digital wallet installed in a cell phone that allows users to hold funds in their accounts.

No transaction fees are required for these funds to be transferred to others or accessed from bank accounts, and users can use eNaira to pay directly for goods or services purchased. The government will also make direct payments through eNaira to citizens who qualify for certain benefit programs.

In addition, the eNaira system uses multiple identity verification in addition to password encryption to ensure the security of funds in the user's digital currency wallet.