There has been a mix of hope and concern for Nigeria’s crypto industry. Stakeholders in the sector have stated that President Bola Tinubu’s government’s actions and policies have left the industry without clarity in the past year.
In his campaign manifesto, Nigerian President Tinubu pledged to legalize crypto and blockchain technology for the country’s banking and finance sector. This move was accepted because of its potential to boost Nigeria’s fragile economy.
Opinions on Tinubu's past year
However, the Nigerian young resident population now feels more bewilderment due to the administration’s recent actions against Nigeria’s crypto industry. In a statement shared with Cointelegraph, Olumide Adesina, an analyst at Quantum Economics, said there is a need for clarity and support to unlock the sector’s potential.
Adesina emphasized that the recent clampdown on P2P trading, the arrest of a Binance executive and the currency manipulation tag by state officials had momentarily kept the industry in a bad light despite its high interest by the country’s young and vibrant population.
A comment from Nathaniel Luz, the CEO of Flincap — a liquidity platform for crypto exchanges — stressed that President Tinubu has a unique chance to shape the growing crypto sector in Nigeria, just as previous leaders did with the banking sector.
Luz stated that the crypto industry is maturing, and it’s up to President Tinubu to decide how to proceed. Luz maintained that the administration has not done enough, and more action is expected.
Crypto policies in the past year
In May 2023, the Nigerian Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) published regulations for digital assets, suggesting the authorities were seeking a middle ground between a ban and a lack of regulation.
In December, the Nigerian SEC lifted its ban on banks operating accounts for crypto service providers, and the central bank stated that global trends suggested a need to regulate the activities of VASPs, which include cryptocurrencies and assets.
In January, the Central Bank released initial guidelines for banks opening cryptocurrency accounts, but banks’ ability to trade or hold virtual assets within their own portfolios remains banned.
The guidelines include stringent Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Know Your Customer (KYC) and other measures. Plus, banks must set what is described as “prudent” transaction limits and not allow cash withdrawals from crypto accounts.
In May 2024, the government of Nigeria began preparing to introduce new regulations banning peer-to-peer (P2P) cryptocurrency exchanges using the national currency, the Nigerian naira.