Nigeria

Regulated Partly Confirmed Verified August 24, 2026

Nigeria recognises digital and virtual assets within its securities framework. VASPs and digital-asset platforms are regulated by the SEC, while banks may serve compliant VASPs under CBN guidelines.

Securities and Exchange Commission Nigeria

Total Laws (incl. applicable EU-wide)

Effective Laws

At a Glance

Is holding crypto allowed?

Allowed

Is crypto trading allowed?

Regulated

Is P2P trading allowed?

Allowed

Are crypto payments allowed?

Regulated

Is crypto legal tender?

Is mining allowed?

Allowed

Is staking allowed?

Regulated

Is DeFi participation allowed?

Regulated

Are stablecoins allowed or regulated?

Regulated

Activity Status Matrix

Activity	Status	Details
Holding Crypto	Allowed	Is holding crypto allowed?
Crypto Trading	Regulated	Is crypto trading allowed?
P2P Trading	Allowed	Is P2P trading allowed?
Crypto Payments	Regulated	Are crypto payments allowed?
Legal Tender	No	Is crypto legal tender?
Mining	Allowed	Is mining allowed?
Staking	Regulated	Is staking allowed?
DeFi	Regulated	Is DeFi participation allowed?
Stablecoins	Regulated	Are stablecoins allowed or regulated?
NFTs	Regulated	Are NFTs allowed or regulated?
Token Launches	Regulated	Are token launches allowed?
Crypto Advertising	Regulated	Is crypto advertising allowed?
Banking Access	Regulated	Do crypto businesses have banking access?

Regulation Overview

Nigeria moved from banking restrictions toward formal regulation. The Investments and Securities Act 2025 strengthened the SEC's jurisdiction over digital and virtual assets and regulated operators. SEC rules cover digital-asset offerings, exchanges, custodians, offering platforms and VASPs, supported by the Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Program. Since December 2023, CBN guidelines permit banks to maintain accounts for compliant VASPs subject to controls, while banks are not thereby authorised to trade crypto for their own account. The Nigeria Revenue Service issued dedicated virtual-asset tax guidance in July 2026 under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025.

Tax Information

Virtual-asset income and gains are taxable under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 and the NRS Guidelines on Taxation of Virtual Assets. Treatment depends on the transaction, taxpayer and whether income or a disposal gain arises.

Individual Tax Treatment

Individuals must report taxable income or gains from virtual-asset transactions under the rules and valuation principles in the NRS guidance. Records should cover acquisition cost, disposal proceeds and transaction type.

Business Tax Treatment

VASPs, issuers, miners and other businesses must recognise virtual-asset revenue and gains under the Nigeria Tax Act, retain records and comply with NRS information and filing requirements.

Nigeria Revenue Service

Business & Licensing

Digital-asset exchanges, custodians, offering platforms and VASPs require SEC registration or approval applicable to their function. ARIP is an onboarding/incubation route and should not be presented as unrestricted final licensing.

AML / KYC Requirements

Regulated operators must maintain customer due diligence, transaction monitoring, suspicious-activity reporting, governance, custody and recordkeeping controls. Banking relationships are subject to CBN VASP-account guidelines.