Nairobi, Feb. 24 -- African banks are abandoning plans to invest in crypto assets or use the technology, dealing a blow to hopes of the unconventional digital assets gaining acceptance in the conventional financial sector.

According to the Financial Industry Barometer published by Deloitte and the Africa Financial Industry Summit (Afis), the number of financial institutions on the continent that see any opportunities in crypto assets this year fell by more than half from last year's 63 percent to 30 percent.

Even fewer bankers (19 percent) think there's any opportunity for crypto assets as an investment avenue for African financial industry players, even though the digital assets have lately been gaining currency amidst increasing retur...