Web3 is still pretty much a myth to most normal everyday Africans (if not the global population). It’s like Game of Thrones or Star Wars, millions have heard of them, a good chunk of these millions have tried to interact with them mostly out of FOMO and there is a very small percentage of these millions who are pretty obsessed with them, this small percentage has read books on these movies, worship the actors like mini-gods, have collectors’ items like action figures and have spent a good amount of time arguing about these movies on forums online.

Web3 is the same, there are those who know it like the back of their hands and those who still think Bitcoin is blockchain and Web3 is what iPhone 3G was to iPhone, as far the internet is concerned, they are still waiting for the launch of Web3. I’m not ashamed (maybe a little ashamed) to say that I was one of these people not too long ago, and still learning.

Web3 products are hard on the masses because it is still seen as the tech for the utmost tech insiders and what makes it even harder is that those in Web3 talk about it often in the techiest of terms, even the apps that are put out to be supposedly used by normal people are explained in these techiest of terms, no normal person knows or cares about what a stablecoin, DeFi or blockchain is, they only want to know if this thing can work like their normal cash at hand or cash in bank.

For the first time since I tried to buy Ethereum coins unsuccessfully in 2015 I found two apps that finally make it easy for the normal Kenyan to see that they can buy and spend Bitcoin like they do with their normal cash at hand. First we’ll talk about Tando, created by Sabina Gitau and Jason G.

If you have been to Kenya, then you know that M-Pesa is currently the number one way that every Kenyan pays for their daily goods and services from grocery shopping to bus fare and for sending money to family in seconds. Tando has made it 1000% easier to do these exact same activities with bitcoin via M-Pesa without adding any layer of friction whatsoever.

In the same way that I would use my M-Pesa app to pay for soda at the supermarket via the till number is the exact same way that I would use the Tando app to pay for that soda to that same till number. They don’t ask for anything, just download the app and go straight to paying for goods via M-Pesa using your bitcoin, or even use your bitcoin to send cash to another M-Pesa number in seconds just like you would your normal M-Pesa app. It’s mind blowing and cool. Bitcoin to FIAT stress free.

The app UI is very simple and clear, and green just like M-Pesa (probably to build trust). Tando doesn’t hold funds so you’d need a different app/wallet where you keep your bitcoin. It syncs with that wallet when initiating a transaction to M-Pesa. If I’m being honest, this is where the friction will come in as they try to onboard more users as they will still have to get them to download a different app for purchasing and storage of bitcoin, they will still have to educate people on this very key aspect of the bitcoin to M-Pesa flow. But with the simple & clear way that their app works, this will not be too big a challenge as they have already conquered the wow factor where one can see that they can spend bitcoin like normal money.

If you come to Kenya and have bitcoin, you need not have Kenyan shillings, you only need to have Tando and you will be able to pay for anything. So more than just introducing Kenyans to payments using bitcoin, Tando makes it easier for people coming outside of Kenya to spend within the country hustle free.

In the next article we’ll talk about how to buy bitcoin from M-pesa in one click using bitka.xyz, Tando’s step sister that’s equally as simple and efficient and made in Kenya. In the meantime, download Tando and start paying for everything in Kenya using bitcoin today.