- Nigerian financial regulators are reviewing regulations guiding the local crypto industry.
- The government has recently gone head to head with exchanges offering services to investors within the country.
- Nigeria’s updated crypto regulations will target money laundering and criminal activities.
Over the past weeks, regulatory troubles have cast a shadow of uncertainty on the local Nigerian crypto market. The government turned up the heat on exchanges operating in the country for the alleged sabotage of its economic stability. Caught in the eye of the controversy was Binance, which faced accusations of terror financing, resulting in its partial exit from the Nigerian crypto market.
Amid the regulatory uncertainties, the Nigerian government is straining to reform the broader market.
Nigeria’s Crypto Regulations Undergo Review
According to local reports on Thursday, March 7, the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will integrate revised guidelines for licensing and registering virtual asset service providers operating within the country.
Sponsored
The guidelines, which include measures against money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism, are aimed at ensuring the protection of the local capital markets from the infiltration of criminals who seek to register as operators.
The SEC has reportedly submitted the guidelines to the necessary government agencies and the anti-money laundering committee for final review, after which it will be made available for public comment before integration.
The commission has expressed its willingness to collaborate with legitimate service providers looking to offer services in accordance with regulations, aligning with the calls for the establishment of clearer regulations to facilitate the industry’s smooth operation.
Nigeria’s Love-Hate Relationship for Crypto
Despite Nigeria’s high rate of crypto adoption as the largest market in Africa, the government and local financial regulators have adopted a conflicting approach to the crypto ecosystem.
Sponsored
In 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria prohibited banks and financial institutions from dealing with crypto activities, even ordering the closure of personal accounts linked to digital asset traders. The government revoked the ban a year later, allowing local investors to engage with crypto trading and exchange platforms.
However, in the recent wake of troubles for its local fiat currency, Naira, the government resorted to its old ways, restricting investor access to crypto services in its pursuit of a scapegoat for its rapid decline.
Crypto-pro advocacy groups in the country have emphasized the need for a coordinated local blockchain industry, calling for clearer measures by the government to ensure investors’ regulated adoption of the ecosystem.
Read more about Nigeria’s adoption of crypto:
Nigeria Turns to Crypto as Currency Crisis Deepens
Binance has riled the crypto community with its stereotypical women-centric fragrance:
