Nigerian President Bola Tinubu signed an executive order Monday establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework for virtual assets, creating a Virtual Asset Council and addressing the fragmentation of crypto oversight across multiple agencies. The order marks the West African nation’s most concerted effort yet to bring clarity to a sector that has operated in a regulatory gray zone despite Nigeria’s position as one of Africa’s largest crypto markets.
The executive order establishes the Virtual Asset Council under the Office of the National Security Adviser, charged with coordinating policy across the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Central Bank of Nigeria, and other regulators. It also mandates a licensing regime for virtual asset service providers, including exchanges, custodians, and token issuers, with capital requirements and anti-money-laundering obligations aligned with Financial Action Task Force standards.
Critically, the order addresses taxation for the first time, directing the Federal Inland Revenue Service to develop a framework for taxing virtual asset transactions and capital gains. Industry participants have long cited tax uncertainty as a barrier to institutional participation, and the move could unlock clearer compliance pathways for local and foreign firms.
Nigeria’s crypto adoption has surged despite regulatory ambiguity, driven by currency devaluation, remittance needs, and a youthful, tech-savvy population. Chainalysis ranked Nigeria second globally in grassroots crypto adoption in its 2023 index. Yet the Central Bank’s 2021 ban on banks servicing crypto firms — later relaxed but never fully replaced with clear rules — left the industry in limbo.
The new council includes representatives from the SEC, CBN, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, and law enforcement, aiming to end jurisdictional turf wars that have stalled enforcement. The order also calls for a regulatory sandbox to allow innovative products to launch under supervision.
Analysts cautioned that implementation will determine the order’s impact. Previous Nigerian crypto regulations have been announced with fanfare only to stall in bureaucratic inertia. But the direct presidential mandate and cross-agency structure represent a more forceful approach than past efforts. Source: Cointelegraph
