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Safe-haven Effectiveness of Cryptocurrency: Evidence from Stock Markets of COVID-19 worst-hit African Countries

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Listed:
  • Raifu, Isiaka Akande
  • Ogbonna, Ahamuefula E

Abstract

The study assessed the hedge or safe-haven property of five cryptocurrencies for stocks of three COVID-19 worst-hit African countries. We address two main concerns bordering on the predictive capacity of African stocks for cryptocurrency returns, and the safe-haven property that cryptocurrencies could offer to African stocks. A distributed lag model, with explicitly incorporated salient statistical features, was adopted based its efficient management of parameter proliferation and estimation biases. We ascertained the model’s in-sample predictability and evaluate its out-of-sample forecasts performance in comparison with historical average model, using Clark and West statistics. While African stocks significantly predicted cryptocurrency returns, the cryptocurrency-stocks nexus revealed the diversifier and safe-haven property of cryptocurrencies for African stocks in periods of normalcy and crisis/pandemic, respectively. Our predictive model outperformed the historical average model in the out-of-sample. Our results may be sensitive to cryptocurrency-stocks nexus, sample periods but not the out-of-sample forecast horizons.

Suggested Citation

  • Raifu, Isiaka Akande & Ogbonna, Ahamuefula E, 2021. "Safe-haven Effectiveness of Cryptocurrency: Evidence from Stock Markets of COVID-19 worst-hit African Countries," MPRA Paper 113139, University Library of Munich, Germany.
  • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:113139
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    COVID-19; Cryptocurrency; Distributed Lag Model; Hedge; Safe-Haven;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C51 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Model Construction and Estimation
    • C58 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Financial Econometrics
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions

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