Nigerian crypto players who accepted central bank ban tipped to be early leaders — Analyst

Crypto players who cooperated with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)  before it lifted the ban on digital assets for Nigerian banks and financial institutions on Dec. 23 are going to be in the best position to lead the industry in the future, according to Nigerian finance professional Olumide Adesina.

In an interview with Cointelegraph, Adesina said those who engaged with regulators and the CBN during the ban period rather than ranting are the biggest winners and are likely to be the early gatekeepers to the industry.

Nigerian cryptocurrency players who actively engaged with regulators have shown significant success in lobbying the central bank to soften its earlier stance, he added.

Adesina noted that the CBN’s recent circular announcing the ban lift is a step in the right direction. He said that with a renewed focus on financial stability, the central bank aims to open the country’s financial ecosystem to digital securities approved by the local regulator.

The biggest lesson in crypto industry is that players who engaged with regulators and the CBN rather than rant are the biggest winners and might likely be the early gate keepers

— Olumide Adesina (@olumidecapital) December 28, 2023

In response to whether the ban lift could affect Nigerian crypto exchanges and peer-to-peer (P2P) merchants, Adesina highlighted that the price action on the NGN/USDT, a popular stablecoin, affirms lukewarm activity despite the recent surge in altcoins as holders of these stablecoins re-evaluate their strategy.

However, Adesina said, the new stablecoin being issued by a collaboration of banks and local fintech companies will have substantial input in the P2P market and widen the country’s financial system.

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Nigeria is currently the biggest P2P market in the world, which was a direct result of the 2021 CBN ban. However, P2P transactions were incurring higher rates than the standard forex rates.

Adesina said it would be premature to try to predict the rates crypto exchanges would use in transactions against the P2P market. He pointed out that crypto exchanges must be operational before rates can be determined.

However, it has been challenging for crypto exchanges to open bank accounts due to an Security Exchange Commission (SEC) regulatory license requirement.

Previously, Nathaniel Luz, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Flincap, told Cointelegraph that Nigerian crypto-fiat exchanges and P2P merchants will have to battle for the Nigerian market.

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