Dependence between bitcoin and African currencies

Africa being one of the poorest continents is an ideal platform for the use of bitcoin. Considering the specific nature of the continent, is this digital currency going to be a propelling factor for its growth? In this paper, we investigate the correlation and dependence structure between bitcoin and eight African currencies using two different concepts, including extreme correlation plots and a bivariate extreme value model due to Gumbel (Bull Inst Int de Stat 37:471475, 1960). The currencies are chosen to correspond to eight biggest economies in Africa. We identify those African currencies having a positive correlation with bitcoin and those having a negative correlation with bitcoin. The dependence quantified can have economic implications. We perform a robustness study to see if the results hold also for parts of the data. We provide economic interpretations of the results which could be of interest to researchers, policy makers and bitcoin investors within the region and beyond. © 2020, Springer Nature B.V.