A law recognising the adoption of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to stay up with “global standards” will reportedly soon be endorsed by the Nigerian government.
According to the Nigerian-based masthead Punch Newspapers report, the local Securities and Exchange Commission would recognise bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as capital for investment were the Amended Investments and Securities Act 2007 Bill to become law.
Ibrahim emphasised that Nigeria must stay current with capital and crypto market trends. There’s a need for an effective and thriving capital market in Nigeria. To accomplish that, we must be up to speed with international standards.
The news comes out nearly 24 months after Nigeria outlawed crypto trading in February 2021, as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ordered local crypto exchanges to suspend operations and halt the accounts of anyone found trading cryptocurrency.
#CBN prohibits regulated institutions from dealing in cryptocurrencies or facilitating payments for cryptocurrency exchanges…https://t.co/OQ6MvQB8O1
— Central Bank of Nigeria (@cenbank) February 5, 2021
Ibrahim, living in Nigeria from 1985 to 1993, says that the law does not represent a complete reversal of the ban but rather another examination of the CBN’s authority.
Nigeria’s 2007 Investments and Securities Act will be amended if the legislation is approved.
The bill will specify the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) and Securities Exchange Commission’s (SEC) regulatory functions on topics relevant to digital currencies and giving legal recognition to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
The eNaira, the digital currency issued by Nigeria’s central bank, has not been appealing to Nigerians and only gained a 0.5% adoption rate as of October, 12 months.
Nigerians only ranked behind the United States in trading volume of BTC from January to August 2021. Back then, they tended to google “Bitcoin” more than people from any other nation.
A CoinGecko research report in April revealed that Nigerian citizens showed the most interest in digital currencies. This is unsurprising, given that Nigerians are still battling severe inflation.
In September, Nigeria started negotiations with crypto exchange Binance to create a crypto-friendly economic zone to support local blockchain and crypto businesses.
