Nigerian Authorities Targeting P2P Crypto Platforms in Crackdown: CBN Denies Involvement

Nigerian Authorities Target P2P Crypto Platforms in Crackdown

Nigerian authorities are ramping up their efforts to crack down on cryptocurrency trading, with a focus on peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms such as OKX, Binance, KuCoin, and Bybit. A trending circular on social media platform X has revealed that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has ordered financial institutions to identify individuals or entities transacting with these exchanges and implement a six-month Post No Debit (PND) instruction on their accounts.

The CBN has stated that the mentioned platforms are not licensed to operate in Nigeria and are currently under investigation. Defaulters of this directive will face severe regulatory sanctions, and the bank has warned that traders engaging in illegal USDT transactions will be arrested.

In a recent press briefing, Ola Olukayode, the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFFC), disclosed that the agency has frozen over 300 suspected illegal forex accounts trading on P2P platforms. Transactions on platforms like KuCoin have been identified as exacerbating the country’s foreign exchange challenges, with over $15 billion passing through one platform in the last year.

The Nigerian government’s strict stance on cryptocurrency comes in an effort to stabilize the foreign exchange market. Initially attributing the weak value of the Nigerian Naira against the US Dollar to speculative activities on Binance, the exchange is now facing trial for tax evasion and money laundering, along with two of its executives. Binance has denied these allegations and is cooperating with authorities while calling for the release of its detained employees.

As the crackdown on crypto trading intensifies in Nigeria, the CBN has reiterated that only entities regulated by the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are permitted to deal with banks in the crypto market. The country’s financial institutions are reminded that they are prohibited from dealing in cryptocurrencies or facilitating payments for crypto exchanges.

The situation continues to evolve, with updates from the Central Bank of Nigeria expected to shed more light on the regulatory landscape surrounding cryptocurrency trading in the country. Stay tuned for further developments on this story.