Welcome to Digital Bytes for 1st June 2022 where we have analysis on the following topics:

Insurance and digital asset mining - the digital world is fast-moving, especially if compared to the more traditional financial landscape which can appear glacially slow in keeping up with the latest and greatest cutting-edge technology. Crypto-mining is attracting global multinationals such as ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips yet, to date, there has been a lack of appetite for underwriters to offer insurance on such business activities. However, as awareness and adoption of digital assets and miners grow, we are beginning to see more interest in engaging in these fast-growing sectors from the insurance industry.

ESG: blockchain technology’s impact - the importance of ESG in determining the value of a company is increasingly becoming evident. Recently, the value of global ESG assets is estimated to exceed $53 trillion by 2025. ESG-rating firms provide corporate social credit scores that rank companies’ negative effects on the world - for instance, pollution, corruption and modern slavery.

How NFTs can help charities - blockchain innovations are becoming a scale wherein ideas and systems are being weighed. The charity industry has not been excluded in this either as it begins to instil NFTs as a means to raise money. For this to work in, what is, an altruistic industry, we must assess where it has succeeded before, the challenges it has faced, and both its advantages and disadvantages. NFTs offer the promise of a set of new digital tools with which to help the charity sector offer greater transparency and appeal to many more ‘digital-savvy’ donors.

How, where and why are blockchain technology and digital assets being used in Africa - despite bans in some African countries, there is considerable interest in digital assets and the use of blockchain technology. Several reasons have contributed to this, mostly infrastructure problems. Whilst some governments are antagonistic, many African governments have begun embracing blockchain solutions. We have seen a huge increase in the number of digital wallets in 2022 so far,but why are digital assets being used in Africa?