NIGERIANS traded at least N316.9bn in bitcoin in 2021 despite the Central Bank of Nigeria’s restrictions on cryptocurrency transactions in the nation’s banking system.
Last February, the CBN directed banks in the nation to desist from transacting in and with entities dealing in cryptocurrencies.
It also mandated banks to close the accounts of persons or entities involved in cryptocurrency transactions.
The apex bank said, “Further to earlier regulatory directives on the subject, the bank hereby wishes to remind regulated institutions that dealing in cryptocurrencies or facilitating payments for cryptocurrency exchanges is prohibited.
“Accordingly, all DMBs, NBFIs, and OFIs are directed to identify persons and/or entities transacting in or operating cryptocurrency exchanges within their systems and ensure that such accounts are closed immediately.”
After the official restriction on crypto assets in the nation, Peer-to-Peer transactions increased. According to a report by Chainalysis, Nigeria is the sixth leading nation in the world in terms of crypto adoption, because of the resilience of its peer-to-peer monetary systems since the CBN banned the digital asset.
Paxful, one of the biggest P2P platforms in the nation, revealed to our correspondent that Nigerians traded over N316.9bn in BTC volume in 2021.
It added that over six million chats were carried out in the nation within the time under review. It stated, “Nigeria is our largest country based on trade volume — Over $760m in trade volume last year.
“In 2021, we also saw over six million successful trades in Nigeria, which breaks down to over 16,000 trades each day. Globally, we saw nearly $3bn in trade volumes on Paxful last year.”
According to the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Ray Youssef, BTC’s adoption is growing, and Africa is leading the way.
He said, “2021 confirmed that Bitcoin adoption is growing, and Africa is continuing to lead the way. “Specifically in Nigeria, which has one of the youngest populations in the world, I saw entrepreneurs build businesses and applications on our platform. The youth are unstoppable.”