Proud Ofentse Macheka, An entrepreneur from Zimbabwe who first learned of Bitcoin while living in the United States, has since built a business with Bitcoin at its core.
He came across Bitcoin when it was around $10,000,” during the 2017 bull run. However, he didn’t invest “because I didn’t have any knowledge about it.”
He then took a few years to learn about cryptocurrencies and also experiment and tinker with Bitcoin — such as using BitPay to pay for clothes on Amazon — before he could come to grips with the decentralized digital currency. However, it was no more than a hobby and an experience that was soon forgotten. Jump to the dark beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and Macheka was obliged to return to Zimbabwe from the United States.
“I didn’t have anything to do when I came back to Zimbabwe. There were no jobs, so I considered foreign exchange (forex) trading,” he says in an interview
The forex account asked for him to deposit some Bitcoin and Macheka remembered he had some “Bitcoin in an old Coinbase account.” He checked, and to his delight, the $500 he had bought during 2017 and 2018 was worth more than $2,000.
He tapped into his network of contacts and began facilitating the importation of cars — from BMWs to Toyotas to off-the-shelf Hondas — from Japan. His Zimbabwe clients give him dollars after which he sends Bitcoin to Japanese car dealerships. Weeks later, the cars arrive. He explained:
Macheka takes a small commission on the sale of cars and balances the dollars he earns with a money transfer service that uses Bitcoin remittance in reverse. As dollars are in scarce supply in Zimbabwe,
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Macheka imports cars using Bitcoin as well as processing peer-to-peer remittance payments to the families of friends in Kenya and overseas.
He then took a few years to learn about cryptocurrencies and also experiment and tinker with Bitcoin — such as using BitPay to pay for clothes on Amazon — before he could come to grips with the decentralized digital currency. However, it was no more than a hobby and an experience that was soon forgotten. Jump to the dark beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and Macheka was obliged to return to Zimbabwe from the United States.
The forex account asked for him to deposit some Bitcoin and Macheka remembered he had some “Bitcoin in an old Coinbase account.” He checked, and to his delight, the $500 he had bought during 2017 and 2018 was worth more than $2,000.
At a eureka moment, Macheka immediately realized he could leverage Bitcoin for payments and investments. He could create work, and more importantly, a salary for himself. The Ovidy E-Wallet transfer hub was born.
He tapped into his network of contacts and began facilitating the importation of cars — from BMWs to Toyotas to off-the-shelf Hondas — from Japan. His Zimbabwe clients give him dollars after which he sends Bitcoin to Japanese car dealerships. Weeks later, the cars arrive. He explained:
“I can't send dollars to Japan as the only way to do so is through banks. When something gives me $5,000 in Bitcoin, I send the Bitcoin to Japan almost instantly, and I already have the cash here and the transaction is confirmed. Bitcoin is a faster and safer process.”
The process would take more than two weeks and involve high commissions if it were done through banks, he added.
Macheka receives Bitcoin from “family members across Zimbabwe,” or from friends’ families in Kenya or overseas, and sends the dollars he makes on cars in return.
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