Greetings to the wilderness \u2014 the Bitcoin Jungle.<\/p>\n
Bitcoin Jungle represents a bitcoin circular economy situated in the Puntarenas province of Uvita, Costa Rica, where upwards of 600 vendors accept bitcoin. It’s also where Francis Pouliot<\/a> has resided for the last three years.<\/p>\n This Canadian expatriate and founder of Bull Bitcoin desires other Bitcoin enthusiast expatriates traveling to the region, and Costa Rica broadly, to experience the sense of belonging he feels in the nation \u2014 embraced.<\/p>\n For this purpose, he and the Bull Bitcoin team developed a web application that operates within the Bitcoin Jungle wallet, an open-source, custodial Lightning wallet, and alongside other Lightning wallets.<\/p>\n Via the web app interface, Bitcoin aficionados can settle payments for nearly anything using bitcoin over Lightning, regardless of whether the vendor or counterparty accepts it.<\/p>\n Utilizing the Bitcoin Jungle app or the web portal<\/a> directly, users can transact with bitcoin and have their bills reconciled in the local currency, col\u00f3nes, via the nation\u2019s national electronic payment system, SINPE (Sistema Nacional de Pagos Electr\u00f3nicos). (This is akin to how Strike, Bringin, and Bull Bitcoin enable users to use bitcoin over Lightning to clear fiat invoices through the United States\u2019 ACH system, Europe\u2019s SEPA system, and Canada\u2019s Interac system, respectively.)<\/p>\n As over 90% of the nation\u2019s populace aged 18 and above utilize SINPE for everyday transactions, the Bull Bitcoin app facilitates participation for non-residents in the nation\u2019s digital economy (you must reside in the country to establish a SINPE account) and\/or for those desiring to adhere to a bitcoin standard.<\/p>\n \u201cThis permits individuals to live solely off of bitcoin,\u201d Pouliot communicated to Bitcoin Magazine. \u201cEvery vendor that accepts fiat payments through SINPE in Costa Rica can now receive payments from a Bitcoiner.\u201d<\/p>\n When individuals utilize the Bull Bitcoin web app in Costa Rica, they make a payment to a backend Bull Bitcoin Lightning node. Once Bull Bitcoin processes this payment, it executes a fiat settlement via SINPE on the user\u2019s behalf.<\/p>\n Bull Bitcoin manages hundreds of such transactions daily in Costa Rica. Between May 2024 and May 2025, Bull Bitcoin processed 32,774 conversions from bitcoin to fiat.<\/p>\n Pouliot takes pride in ensuring that the Bull Bitcoin web app is as reliable as a credit card since he understands that many individuals in the country, including himself, rely on it consistently.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you find yourself at a gas station in Costa Rica and lack a credit card after refueling your vehicle, you need that Lightning-to-SINPE transaction to function, or else you\u2019re in trouble,\u201d Pouliot clarified.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is how many of us exist here. We don\u2019t utilize credit cards. We don\u2019t possess cash. So, if I visit the gas station, this app better work perfectly. Otherwise, I just refueled my vehicle, and I\u2019m dealing with a very upset gas station attendant,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n \u201cThe success rate is significantly over 99% \u2014 nearly 100%. I don\u2019t recall any Lightning payments failing. And that\u2019s because Bull Bitcoin is operated by ardent Bitcoin supporters who are adept at navigating Lightning Network liquidity.\u201d<\/p>\n Pouliot noted that the most challenging aspect of maintaining the app’s functionality isn\u2019t operating the Lightning node or connecting the banking API. Instead, he stated that the biggest hurdle is acquiring the fiat liquidity in a less widely accepted fiat currency like the col\u00f3n.<\/p>\n \u201cThere exists no international open marketplace for low-liquidity fiat currencies and bitcoin,\u201d Pouliot clarified.<\/p>\n \u201cNeither Kraken, Binance, nor Coinbase lists the col\u00f3n \u2014 there\u2019s no bitcoin-to-col\u00f3nes order book. We need to sell the bitcoin to another party to obtain the fiat for paying the fiat merchants,\u201d he elaborated.<\/p>\n He explained that, due to major bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchanges not listing the col\u00f3n, he effectively establishes the exchange rate for it by creating a \u201cvirtual bitcoin-to-col\u00f3n exchange rate.\u201d To derive this rate, Pouliot considers the col\u00f3n-to-U.S. dollar rate and the USD-to-bitcoin rate, then applies a 1% gross margin to ensure Bull Bitcoin remains profitable while keeping the service accessible for users.<\/p>\n He asserted that ensuring liquidity is indeed the primary challenge in this process and expressed respect for others globally who provide a similar service with comparable reliability.<\/p>\n \u201cWhenever you notice a group of individuals who have achieved this fluid operation, understand that while it appears straightforward, it can be very intricate on the backend,\u201d Pouliot mentioned. \u201cThat\u2019s why, for example, I find Tando remarkably impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n The Kenyan iteration of the Bull Bitcoin app isn\u2019t merely a web app, but a fully functional app, although the team behind Tando drew inspiration from Bull Bitcoin\u2019s achievements in Costa Rica.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Bitcoin Jungle team shared a video on their X where they entered a gas station and utilized bitcoin while the vendor received local currency,\u201d Jason, one of Tando\u2019s co-founders, revealed to Bitcoin Magazine.<\/p>\n “`<\/p>\n \u201cI was like, \u2018That\u2019s really neat.\u2019 We thought it might work here if Safaricom [a Kenyan mobile telecommunications provider] has an API,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd with just a bit of investigation, we determined that \u2018Yes, we can achieve this.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Jason and his co-founder, Sabina Waithira<\/a>, initiated the application in July 2024, allowing Kenyan users to settle bills in Kenyan shillings via M-PESA (Safaricom facilitated the launch of M-PESA), a mobile money platform functioning in over six African nations, while making payments with bitcoin through Lightning.<\/p>\n With Tando, users can pay bills, purchase items, and transfer Kenyan shillings with nothing except the recipient\u2019s phone number and a Lightning wallet. (M-PESA solely requires a recipient\u2019s phone number for transferring funds.)<\/p>\n The user sends bitcoin from the Lightning wallet they prefer, Tando\u2019s Lightning node accepts the bitcoin, and Tando clears the fiat M-PESA bill for the sender.<\/p>\n All of this occurs within mere seconds.<\/p>\n I know from personal experience because I utilized Tando while attending the African Bitcoin Conference in Kenya in 2024.<\/p>\n While in Kenya, I used Tando to pay taxi fares and restaurant bills via M-PESA, which I otherwise couldn\u2019t have done, as I wasn\u2019t in the nation long enough to open an M-PESA account and fund it with Kenyan shillings. As a short-term visitor, it was significantly easier to spend bitcoin into the local economy through Tando, which doesn\u2019t necessitate a sign-up process.<\/p>\n Waithira wasn’t aware of the developments regarding Lightning-to-fiat transactions in Costa Rica until Jason pointed it out to her.<\/p>\n What drove her to realize Tando was instead her own experience attempting to use bitcoin in Kenya.<\/p>\n \u201cI previously worked for Bitcoin Dada [a digital Bitcoin education platform and community for African women] and would sometimes receive payments in bitcoin,\u201d Waithira shared with Bitcoin Magazine<\/em>. \u201cIt was challenging to use that Bitcoin directly.\u201d<\/p>\n While Waithira devised inventive ways to use her bitcoin, such as tipping servers at restaurants, she frequently encountered the same inquiry from those service workers: \u201cHow can I use this bitcoin?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn’t have a solid answer to this question,\u201d Waithira stated. \u201cThus, this also inspired Tando.\u201d<\/p>\n Waithira mentioned that \u201cKenyans are very quick learners and quite inquisitive,\u201d making it easier to introduce them to Bitcoin and Tando, while Jason noted that Kenyans have been prepared for Bitcoin, given their experience with the mobile money transformation through M-PESA over the past fifteen years.<\/p>\n Waithira also indicated they aimed to make Tando as user-friendly as M-PESA is \u2014 to avoid intimidating users with a complex interface.<\/p>\n \u201cWe aimed to replicate the M-PERA experience,\u201d Waithira described.<\/p>\n \u201cI prefer not to think too much when using apps, and I don\u2019t believe our clients do either,\u201d she added. \u201cWe kept this in perspective throughout Tando\u2019s design.\u201d<\/p>\n Waithira and Jason evidently did something right, as Tando has been steadily gaining popularity among ordinary Kenyans. It now handles over 100 transactions each day.<\/p>\n Furthermore, beyond merely aiding more Kenyans to live on a bitcoin standard, the app inspired a developer on the opposite side of the African continent to create a similar solution for the citizens of his homeland, Ghana.<\/p>\n Bright Kportiklah also participated in the 2024 African Bitcoin Conference and was among the many attendees who utilized Tando while in Kenya.<\/p>\n Inspired by his experiences in Kenya and the connections he established at the conference, the software developer returned to Ghana intending to create his own version of Tando.<\/p>\n Within a few months, Kportiklah had a beta version of a Lightning-to-fiat interface he had developed \u2014 BitSpenda<\/a> \u2014 operational. He accomplished this partly due to assistance from experienced Nigerian Bitcoin entrepreneur Bernard Parah, founder and CEO of Bitnob, whom Kportiklah had met at the conference.<\/p>\n Bitnob is a nearly decade-old financial services enterprise that utilizes payment infrastructure built on Bitcoin and Lightning. Parah and the Bitnob team aided Kportiklah in connecting to local off-ramps in Africa, including mobile money systems in Ghana and Kenya and bank accounts in Nigeria. (BitSpenda currently caters to the citizens of these three nations.)<\/p>\n \u201cConnecting to these local off-ramps via API as a small fintech is quite challenging,\u201d Kportiklah conveyed to Bitcoin Magazine.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I mentioned to Bernard at the conference that I wanted to create something akin to Tando, he provided me a contact in Ghana,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n This contact helped Kportiklah link BitSpenda to Ghana\u2019s mobile money framework.<\/p>\n Kportiklah also mentioned that Kgothatso Ngako, the founder of Machankura (which enables users to send bitcoin over Lightning using a feature phone), and Onionsman of Bitpension (a bitcoin pension account service based in Nigeria) have provided valuable guidance on the project.<\/p>\n \u201cI met all these individuals at the conference in Kenya, and they have significantly contributed to helping me develop this,\u201d Kportiklah remarked.<\/p>\n BitSpenda launched on March 7 this year.<\/p>\n To utilize the web app, senders can search for the recipients they wish to send funds to by<\/p>\n “`html<\/p>\n telephone number in Ghana and Kenya and by bank account number in Nigeria.<\/p>\n Once the sender has located the recipient they desire and decides to make a payment, a Lightning invoice or QR code is created, and, nearly immediately, the bitcoin the user transmits is converted into the recipient\u2019s local currency and the transaction is finalized.<\/p>\n \u201cWithin 30 seconds, the recipient will obtain the funds, and the sender can verify on BitSpenda whether the money was received or not,\u201d Kportiklah explained.<\/p>\n If a transaction does not succeed, which has only occurred in less than 1% of transaction attempts so far, Kportiklah can manually transfer the payment to the recipient and inform the sender that the transaction has succeeded.<\/p>\n As of late April 2025, the app had processed thousands of U.S. dollars’ worth of transactions. Kportiklah asserted that the app has inspired more Ghanaians to utilize bitcoin not solely because they believe bitcoin is a superior form of currency than Ghanaian cedis, the nation\u2019s fiat money, but for another significant reason as well.<\/p>\n \u201cGhanaians are more inclined to utilize Bitcoin due to the value it provides in terms of finance,\u201d Kportiklah noted.<\/p>\n \u201cFor instance, in Ghana, if you maintain your funds in your bank accounts, at the month\u2019s end, the bank will impose fees, but this is not the case when individuals use bitcoin instead of their banks,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cSome individuals also simply perceive bitcoin as a currency that carries more value compared to the Ghanaian cedi and opt to use it for that reason.\u201d<\/p>\n Kportiklah also pointed out that an app like BitSpenda is especially useful in Ghana, where outside of the Bitcoin circular economy that Kportiklah serves as the technical advisor for \u2014 Bitcoin Dua \u2014 nearly no merchants accept bitcoin.<\/p>\n And he aspires to not only provide this service to Ghanaians but to Africans in over a dozen nations.<\/p>\n \u201cA year from now, we aim to be in no fewer than 15 African countries,\u201d Kportiklah stated.<\/p>\n It\u2019s difficult to doubt he\u2019ll achieve this when, in less than four months, he successfully launched BitSpenda in three countries.<\/p>\n Kportiklah mentioned he is currently finalizing the required documentation to make BitSpenda accessible to members of the remaining 12 countries he intends to serve.<\/p>\n He must act swiftly, however, considering that the team from Tando is planning to expand into Uganda soon and that a new web app developed by a Senegalese programmer \u2014 Banxaas<\/a> \u2014 now facilitates bitcoin-to-fiat payments in Senegal, as well.<\/p>\n The irony in what Pouliot, Waithira, Jason, and Kportiklah have developed is that they\u2019re less driven by earning money than they are by generating bitcoin<\/em> wealth.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThis is not a lucrative venture,\u201d Pouliot remarked dryly about Bull\u2019s Bitcoin Costa Rica web app.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u201cIn fact, this comes with a very high cost for us \u2014 it\u2019s quite complex and has a lot of overhead. Thus, it\u2019s approached with the attitude of \u2018Perhaps one day it will be profitable,\u2019 but we engage in this more to be part of the Bitcoin Jungle mission of upholding infrastructure to support Lightning,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cNot to imply that it will never become a profitable enterprise. I genuinely encourage individuals to see it as an opportunity for potential profit. However, on a larger scale, it\u2019s very challenging to execute.\u201d<\/p>\n Neither the creators of Tando nor Kportiklah have devised a monetization strategy as of yet.<\/p>\n \u201cOur business model is that we acquire bitcoin,\u201d Jason stated half-jokingly.<\/p>\n He mentioned that he and Waithira have received numerous requests from other wallets wishing to utilize their Safaricom API, and they are contemplating charging a fee for these wallets to do so. Nevertheless, this does not appear to be their primary focus, as they aim for Kenyans to recognize bitcoin as a means of exchange.<\/p>\n Kportiklah shares a similar perspective:<\/p>\n \u201cThe current goal is simply to create a tool that will assist people in utilizing Bitcoin effortlessly,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Near the conclusion of my conversation with Pouliot, he reiterated the importance of recognizing that it requires a significant amount of effort from devoted Bitcoiners to achieve the \u201cwith ease\u201d aspect, noting that projects like these are most effectively developed and managed at the local level by individuals who possess a thorough understanding of the traditional financial system with which they are interacting.<\/p>\n \u201cThese products are best constructed as grassroots initiatives because they necessitate knowledge of the banking landscape on the ground,\u201d Pouliot clarified.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is why we don\u2019t have numerous expansion strategies; however, I\u2019m pleased to support other local initiatives with technology and guidance,\u201d he added, before expressing admiration for what NostrPIX, another Lightning-to-fiat payment application, is accomplishing in Brazil.<\/p>\n He concluded by again commending his colleagues across the globe who are effectively building and running such interfaces:<\/p>\n \u201cWhenever you witness a local group of Bitcoiners succeeding, be assured that they are truly remarkable and that it wasn\u2019t an easy feat to accomplish.\u201d<\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss the opportunity to acquire\u00a0The Lightning Issue<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0\u2014 featuring a unique discussion with Lightning co-creator Tadge Dryja. It thoroughly examines Bitcoin\u2019s most influential scaling component. Limited edition. Available solely while stock lasts.<\/p>\n This segment is an article highlighted in the most recent\u00a0Print\u00a0<\/a>issue of Bitcoin Magazine, The Lightning Issue. We\u2019re presenting it here to illustrate the concepts addressed throughout the complete edition.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn-ileamcn.nitrocdn.com\/BngESKHdyFjXuZbvyAhEMmtQtwLKSKkU\/assets\/images\/optimized\/rev-69be608\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/The-Rise-of-Lightning-Article-Graphic1-1024x536.png\" "\\"From")
<\/figure>\nFunctionality of the Bull Bitcoin Costa Rica Web App<\/h2>\n
Kenya\u2019s Tando<\/h2>\n
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<\/figure>\nSimplifying Bitcoin Spending for Kenyans<\/h3>\n
Ghana\u2019s BitSpenda<\/h2>\n
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<\/figure>\nA Labor Of Love<\/h2>\n
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