Worldcoin Says 635K Kenyans Have Downloaded Crypto App
Over 635,00 Kenyans have downloaded the Worldcoin app, cryptocurrency project representatives informed Parliament on Wednesday.
Executives from Tools For Humanity (TFH), the Germany-based global hardware and software company that led the initial development of the Worldcoin protocol, appeared before the Parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee to answer questions about the operations of the suspended cryptocurrency project.
Sam Sadle, TFH’s Director of Government Relations and Public Policy, informed the House that 635,000 Kenyans are among the nearly 3 million individuals worldwide who have downloaded the application.
Saddle reported that of these individuals, 345,000 had not yet had their irises scanned with the Worldcoin Orb to verify their identity since the project’s cessation in the country on August 2.
“We have been receiving endless comments from Kenyans who want to know when we are coming back and we hope we will find a way of working with you all and the government to find a solution and bring it back to Kenyans,” he said.
In Kenya, the cryptography initiative was suspended on August 2 due to concerns regarding data security.
It was rolled out globally on June 24, and despite its goals of creating a decentralized global currency, the project was greeted with privacy concerns and questions about the security of the biodata the company was collecting from Kenyans.
This was exacerbated by the fact that after the verification procedure, new members received 25 free cryptocurrency tokens, worth Ksh.8,256 at the time.
Thomas Scott, the chief legal officer of TFH, stated on Wednesday that they piloted the project in Kenya, Chile, and Portugal for three years before its introduction in June.
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When asked why they chose Kenya, Scott mentioned the country’s tech adoption rate.
“The level of tech adoption, talent, political stability, and integrity here, we thought that this was a place alongside Chile and Portugal where the ideas alongside the technology could be tested to be improved,” he said.
“We hoped to find people who would adopt and champion it.”
Governor of the Central Bank of Kenya Kamau Thugge testified before the committee on Tuesday that CBK did not participate in licensing or verifying Worldcoin’s owners.
Additionally, Njoroge disclosed that the lender was unaware of Worldcoin’s activities in the country.
Worldcoin maintained on Wednesday that it has been in contact with the Office of the Data Commissioner since 19 April 2022, when it registered as a data controller and not as a limited company.
The company’s website indicates that it has received 2,279,884 registrations and verifications from 34 countries.
Worldcoin Says 635K Kenyans Have Downloaded Crypto App