INTERNET CITY, DUBAI, December 24, 2022, Chainwire

Nigeria has unveiled a significant piece of legislation that will further facilitate cryptocurrency adoption in the country of over 200 million people.

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why does this matter

If the Securities and Investments (Amendment) Bill, 2007 is passed, the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will recognize cryptocurrencies and other digital assets as capital for investment.

  • Babangida Ibrahim, Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee, shared in an interview with a local media outlet Punchthat the proposed bill will specify the roles of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the country’s SEC with respect to cryptocurrencies.
  • Ibrahim said the bill is not a complete change to existing restrictive laws, just a review of what could be done within the current legal framework. However, he believes that Nigeria must keep up with global economic innovations.
  • Notably, the Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) stated in a press release in September that it was considering partnering with cryptocurrency exchange Binance to create a virtual free zone to promote economic growth.

go deeper

The legal plan comes at a time when Nigeria has spent nearly 2 years under a cryptocurrency ban for financial institutes, and the country’s CBDC, eNaira, has failed to achieve widespread adoption.

  • Since the launch of the CBDC in October 2021, it currently has an adoption rate of just 0.5% among the population.
  • The legal model could hinder further support for eNaira. “This bill will basically create more cryptocurrency adoption. Through regulation of this asset class, we could start to see taxes and legal registrations if you want to build something in the blockchain space,” says Anointing Aha, community manager for Nigeria at global crypto exchange LBank. .
  • For now, Nigeria seems to be moving towards more adoption, but nothing is set in stone. “Nigeria’s presidential election is coming up early next year and a lot will depend on the new president,” Aha adds.

Contact

LBK Blockchain Co. Limited, [email protected]