Theophilus Isah

Yesterday, we officially wrapped up the Addis Ababa Lightning Developer Bootcamp with our Hackathon and Demo Day. 🇪🇹⚡ Participants presented the projects they had been working on throughout the week, showcasing not only what they learned but also their ability to apply Bitcoin and Lightning concepts to real world applications. Over five days, participants explored Bitcoin fundamentals, ran Bitcoin nodes, created and signed transactions, contributed to open source, and built applications powered by the Lightning Network. Watching their growth from Day 1 to Demo Day was truly rewarding. A special thank you to our lead instructor, @Extheo , for his dedication, patience, and commitment to delivering a highly practical learning experience throughout the bootcamp. Thank you to @kelvinator05 , Engineering Lead at @btrustteam , for leading the open source sessions and helping participants make their first contributions to Bitcoin open source projects. We are also incredibly grateful to @KalKassa and his team for the countless hours of work that went into making this bootcamp a reality. Their efforts behind the scenes played a huge role in the success of the program. Most importantly, congratulations to all the participants. The enthusiasm, curiosity, teamwork, and determination you demonstrated throughout the week made this bootcamp a success. We look forward to seeing the projects you continue to build and the contributions you make to the Bitcoin ecosystem. Also, shoutout to @_Satoshee and @EMbits for all their work throughout the week. Their efforts behind the scenes helped make this bootcamp possible and ensured participants had a great learning experience. A huge thank you to our sponsors and partners for supporting Bitcoin and Lightning education across Africa: @HRF, @BTrustBuilders, @Tether_Africa, @planb_network, @afribitcoiners, and @BitDevsAddis. See you in Kigali. ⚡

Day 3 of the Addis Ababa Lightning Developer Bootcamp continued with even more hands on learning. ⚡🇪🇹 Our instructor, @Extheo , guided participants through building their own Bitcoin Explorer that connects directly to their Bitcoin Core node, giving them a deeper understanding of how applications communicate with the Bitcoin network. In the afternoon, @kelvinator05 introduced participants to the world of open source development. Many submitted their very first pull requests to the @btrust_builders Open Source repository, taking an important step toward becoming active contributors to the Bitcoin ecosystem. We also wrapped up the day by splitting participants into teams as they begin preparing for Friday's Hackathon and Demo Day. Three days in, it's exciting to see participants move from learning Bitcoin fundamentals to building applications and contributing to open source. Tomorrow, we begin exploring the Lightning Network.

Photos from Day 2 of the "Lightning Developer Bootcamp" held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia today 🇪🇹

Photos from Day 1 of the "Lightning Developer Bootcamp" held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia today 🇪🇹

When payments work seamlessly, people and businesses can focus on what matters most. Through @mavapay, @Extheo is building payment solutions that make that possible. He is one of the voices joining us as we celebrate two years of Impact and Growth🥳🎊 Be part of the conversation 👉 x.com/i/spaces/1dkrp…

⚡ Addis Ababa, it’s getting closer. 🇪🇹 Less than 2 weeks to go before the Lightning Developer Bootcamp begins. 📅 27th – 31st July 2026 If you’ve been thinking about joining, this is your moment! 👉 freerouting.africa/addis-ababa-li…

1/ If @Bitcoin  is the train, then the Lightning Network is the rail that helps it move value faster and more efficiently! Led by @sterling_ry of IBEX, we explored how Lightning can make Bitcoin payments feel closer to instant compared to traditional on-chain transactions.

1/ Cross-border payments don't have to be complicated. @Extheo walked us through how @mavapay is making it possible for people to send and receive money across African countries in their local currencies, with Bitcoin quietly working behind the scenes.

@StephTitcombe Congratulations, Stephanie 🎊

It’s official (well… it’s been official since January, but who’s counting? 😅) Say hello to a Nexford University MBA graduate! I know, I know… I'm a little late sharing this. Life happened. But better late than never, right? Over the course of the program, I completed 15 courses, submitted 90+ assignments, and delivered countless presentations (complete with embedded videos where I got to present my research and ideas). Balancing a full-time program lead role during the day with classes and assignments at night wasn't always easy. There were weeks I genuinely don't know how I made it through, but somehow, I did. I'm incredibly grateful for the journey, the lessons, and the growth that came with it. Here's to new milestones and whatever comes next. And before anyone asks... a PhD? No, thank you. 😅

💯

🎙️ From The Founder's Desk | Episode 2 What does it take to build Bitcoin payment infrastructure that actually works in Africa? In this sit-down conversation, we speak with Theophilus Isah (@Extheo), Co-Founder of @mavapay /@Mavapay_Money, about building one of Africa's Bitcoin Lightning off-ramp solutions. From a hackathon project to enabling instant bank transfers and mobile money payouts across multiple African countries, Theophilus shares the realities of building, surviving, and scaling Bitcoin infrastructure on the continent. ➡️Bitcoin to local bank accounts. ➡️Cross-border payments without SWIFT. ➡️Lightning adoption in Africa. ➡️Lessons from three years of building. If you're curious about the future of Bitcoin payments in Africa, this is a conversation worth watching. 🎥 Watch Episode 2 now: bitcoinnews.africa/mavapay-theoph…

What happens when a transaction changes its identity? @Camilla_rhi walked us through the implementation of Replace-By-Fee in @lightningdevkit Node, unpacking the challenges of fee bumping-where a new transaction ID replaces the old one and creates conflicts in payment tracking. The session explored how to maintain consistent payment state, handle transaction replacements, and design storage systems that correctly track and resolve these conflicts.

@metamick14 @Fideltodayy Nigeria - @Mavapay_Money by @Extheo

On June 2nd, the @HRF will be hosting the Freedom Tech Track at the 2026 @OsloFF 🇳🇴, bringing together builders, founders, and advocates exploring the role of technology in advancing freedom around the world. Our CEO, @ihate1999, is one of the featured speakers and will be joining the panel on bitcoin adoption in practice. He’ll be speaking alongside: • @AnaiseKanimba, director & founder, @AfriBitInst • @obi, founder & CEO, @fedibtc • @waithiraah, co-founder, @tando_me 📍 Oslo Konserthus, Deep Dive Stage ⏰ June 2nd, 5:45pm This is one session you won’t want to miss. Check out the Freedom Tech Track speaker lineup and schedule here: oslofreedomforum.com/event/oslo-fre…

JUST IN 🦒: Rita Anene (@Camilla_rhi) of Btrust to speak at bitcoin++ Nairobi, open source edtion this coming June 17-19, 2026 ~~Implementing Replace-By-Fee (BIP 125) in LDK Node~~ Join us 👉 #tickets" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">btcpp.dev/nairobi#tickets

Next week, the Q2 pathways are set to begin. 🚀 This quarter, developers will be joining Rust for Bitcoiners and Language Clubs. Rust for Bitcoiners 🦀 is designed for developers who want to deepen their Rust skills. The pathway focuses on building the Rust knowledge needed to engage with Bitcoin projects, with curated resources, structured weekly progress, and support from peers and faculty along the way. Language Clubs focuses on strengthening programming fluency in languages commonly used in Bitcoin development. The pathway helps developers build the language foundations that make meaningful open‑source contribution possible later on. Participants work through curated learning tracks while learning alongside peers in a supportive environment. Both pathways emphasize peer learning, structured progress, and practical skill development. We’ll also be using the hybrid engagement model designed to support more developers without compromising the learning experience. Each pathway will be running in two formats: a live cohort and a self‑paced track, giving developers more flexibility in how they participate while still benefiting from the Builders community. To learn more about the pathways and join our community, start here: btrust.tech/builders/apply Apply to join the waitlist for future cohorts here: btrust.homerun.co/btrust-builder…

⚡️ Donations are now open to support Polar. lightningpolar.com/donate/ Polar has been fully open source and free to the Bitcoin dev community for over 6 years, and it’s grown thanks to the community: ✨ 800+ GitHub stars ✅ 30K+ downloads 🔨 40+ code contributors 🧵

@gladstein @robin_linus @mavapay in Nigeria @bitspenda in Ghana @banxaas_sn in Senegal @BitZed_ in Zambia @TapnobHQ in Nigeria

This is the future of money in Africa. Download Mavapay Money now ⚡ apps.apple.com/ng/app/mavapay… play.google.com/store/apps/det…

Why pay more when you don’t have to? Save on every cross border transaction with Mavapay Money⚡ Enjoy the best rates and even better deals.