Nigeria, the African continent’s largest economy made a huge move towards crypto adoption while you were sleeping.
The country’s Federal Ministry of Finance agreed to open talks with the country’s securities regulator to develop a new framework for Blockchain and crytocurrencies. The move comes just a few weeks after a major government agency held meetings in Abuja to discuss the impact Blockchain could have on the Nigerian economy.
According to Business Day, a Nigerian market intelligence publication, the ministry of finance is in talks with the Abuja-based securities exchange commission or the SEC. The talks are meant to provide a “regulatory environment for Blockchain” and digital assets.
Digital assets recognized as commodities in Nigeria
As things stand, digital assets are recognized as commodities and are governed by appropriate securities laws in the country. Recognizing digital assets this way came about when the SEC drew guidelines about the same back in September and mentioned that it would regulate the asset class. According to the SEC Nigeria;
“The general objective of regulation is not to hinder technology or stifle innovation, but to create standards that encourage ethical practices that ultimately make for a fair and efficient market.”
The move by the ministry of finance comes at a time when cryptos are seeing a boom in Nigeria. The move will open the door for more adoption since more Nigerians will have access to digital tokens. Timing is also interesting here because the crypto markets are in a bull run that was last seen back in 2017.
The rising prices in Bitcoin and Altcoins has been attributed largely to rising institutional interest. Mass adoption and demand in the most populous country in Africa.
Image Courtesy of Pexels
