Mara, the Africa-focused decentralized finance platform, has released a testnet for its upcoming project called Mara Chain. This innovative Ethereum-compatible layer 2 network operates using MARA tokens for fees, as shared by the developers in an email statement.

This release opens up opportunities for developers in Nigeria and across Africa to construct and evaluate their decentralized applications on the Optimism forked Mara Chain. The platform’s launch follows closely after the introduction of the Mara Wallet, which facilitates users in trading and withdrawing both fiat currencies and tokens.

CEO of Mara, Chi Nnadi, emphasized the significance of blockchain technology as a crucial utility and infrastructure for every country, comparable to electricity or the internet. He further expressed that Africa holds immense potential that can be unlocked by utilizing blockchain technology to provide widespread benefits for its people.

Testnets, such as the one introduced by Mara Chain, replicate real-world blockchains, enabling developers to test applications and identify any potential bugs or shortcomings prior to a full-fledged launch.

The developers behind Mara Chain have outlined several advantages of their platform, including sub-second transactional speeds, low gas fees, and compatibility with other Optimism-based networks.

Moreover, Mara actively seeks feedback from the developer community and partners, demonstrating their commitment to continuous improvement of the platform in preparation for the mainnet launch. By gathering valuable input, Mara aims to refine its offerings and create a robust and user-friendly decentralized finance ecosystem for Africa and beyond.