GI-TOC Report: CAR Crypto Scheme Fuels ‘State Capture’ by Criminal Networks
A new report from GI-TOC alleges that CAR’s crypto adoption is a front for foreign criminal networks to capture state resources like gold and diamonds.
The Lede
The Central African Republic’s pivot to cryptocurrency is not an economic revolution. It is a vector for foreign criminal organizations to seize sovereign assets, according to a report published today by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC). The investigation concludes that the regime’s digital asset strategy, including the launch of Sango Coin and the $CAR meme token, has effectively opened a backdoor for “state capture,” allowing shadow networks to tokenize and acquire the nation’s mineral wealth while bypassing global money laundering safeguards.
Infrastructure vs. Ideology
The report highlights a fatal disconnect between President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s “digital gold” narrative and the physical reality of the nation. While the government legally tendered Bitcoin and marketed the Sango project as a gateway to financial inclusion, only 15.7% of the population has access to electricity, and fewer than 40% hold mobile subscriptions. GI-TOC notes that this infrastructure gap renders the crypto ecosystem inaccessible to the citizenry it ostensibly serves, suggesting the framework was “tailored more to the interests of foreign investors than to the needs of its own population.”
Tokenized Sovereignty
The stakes extend beyond failed monetary policy. A July 2023 law allows for the tokenization of natural resources, including diamonds, gold, and oil, which GI-TOC argues creates an opaque auction block for state assets. By extending these digital schemes to mineral concessions with virtually no identity verification, the government risks handing control of strategic reserves to transnational criminal groups and “pro-Russian businesspeople” entrenched in the region.
“The CAR regime is effectively trading away the country’s sovereignty at the expense of the wider population.”
Market Reality
The tokens themselves tell a story of abandonment. Sango Coin ($SANGO), intended to be backed by Bitcoin, has seen liquidity evaporate, with 24-hour trading volumes often hitting zero across tracking platforms. Meanwhile, the $CAR meme token, also linked to the administration’s broader push, trades with a market cap of just ~$4 million and erratic volume, marked by what the report describes as technical irregularities and signs of market manipulation. The initial vision of raising billions for infrastructure has materialized as a series of illiquid assets and unverified smart contracts.
Outlook
With elections approaching on December 28, the GI-TOC warns that these crypto structures remain active vulnerabilities. Without immediate enforcement of AML standards or the repeal of resource tokenization laws, the mechanisms for stripping state assets remain open to the highest bidder, anonymous or otherwise.
