According to reports, the Nigerian government may soon enact a law that will acknowledge the use of Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies as a way to stay current with “global norms.”
After speaking with the chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Markets, Babangida Ibrahim, Punch Newspapers, a Nigerian publication, broke the news on December 18. Stating that, this law will allow businesses to store and use Cryptocurrencies as a means to ensure that they are able to purchase items.
The Nigerian government and her citizens are expected to begin using Bitcoin for their daily transactions and investment deals in order to keep up with global practices.
Punch Newspapers also contacted the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Markets who said that they were not able to comment on the report.
Ibrahim stressed the need for Nigeria to keep up to date with trends and developments in capital markets.
The report was released almost 24 months after the Nigeria Government through it’s Apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria issued a circular restricting banks involvement on any crypto related activities in February 2021, recommending that Nigerian banks should immediately close any account(s) of persons engaged in crypto trading activities, and should also put under inspections all buildings used to store or the digital exchange value.
The circular restricting banks involvement on Cryptocurrencies and its related activities is an important measure that is necessary for a country that is rapidly becoming a rubble-bottom in terms of economic development.
“Ibrahim, who presided over Nigeria from 1985 to 1993, is adamant that the law’s passage does not represent a reversal of the ban but rather a secondary examination of the CBN’s authority.
“We are examining the legality: what is legal and what is within the framework of our operations in Nigeria,” the statement reads. “It is not about the lifting of the ban.”
The CBN found that the majority of these investors didn’t even have local accounts when bitcoin was first outlawed in Nigeria. As a result, CBN does not have authority over it.
Additionally the law defines the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) regulatory responsibilities in areas pertaining to digital currencies in addition to providing legal recognition to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. the report stated.
The rule became effective at the same time as Nigerians showed little to no interest in their eNaira, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s digital money.
