Regulate cryptocurrency transactions, CBN urged
Experts have urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to put measures in place to regulate the transaction of cryptocurrency rather than banning it.
The CBN had last Friday issued a directive to deposit money banks (DMBs), non-financial banks and other financial institutions not to provide banking services to entities dealing with cryptocurrencies.
On Sunday the apex bank issued a statement explaining that it did not place any new restrictions on cryptocurrencies, given that all banks in the country had earlier been forbidden from using, holding or trading in cryptocurrencies.
President of Stakeholders in Blockchain Association of Nigeria (SiBAN), Mr. Senator Ihenyan, said it has made efforts since 2017 to engage the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to regulate the cryptocurrency market in Nigeria to no avail.
According to him, regulation is the approach the developed countries have taken. The United State currency regulator recently allowed banks to trade in stablecoins. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies that attempt to peg their market value to some external reference like the US dollar.
He added that Singapore, Iceland and Malta have become top destinations in blockchain investment because of their approach, which is regulation.
He said countries like Bolivia, Kyrgyzstan, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iran, Bangladesh, Nepal, Cambodia and developed economies CBN claimed have restricted digital currency trading, including Japan, South Korea, Switzerland, Singapore, Portugal, USA, UK, Canada Australia and France, all have positive dispositions towards crypto, with Germany recognising bitcoin as a means of payment as far back as 2018.
“The reference to quotes from the likes of Warren Buffet is a classic example of the one side story which failed to highlight the fact that the current richest man in the world Elon Musk, is pro-cryptocurrency and publicly quoted companies like Tesla, NYDIG, and Microstrategy hold a chunk of their treasury in cryptocurrency,” said another expert.
Some firms that invested users’ funds in the business have been experiencing difficulties in fulfilling their financial obligations to the users. Exchanges like Luno, Quidax, and BuyCoins were among the first to suspend deposits of naira on their platforms.
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