Nigeria is amending regulations to tax cryptocurrency trading and digitized transactions as part of efforts to boost revenue.
Why it matters
With a rapidly growing crypto market, Nigeria sees an opportunity to generate substantial tax revenue while increasing oversight of digital assets.
State of play
- The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is drafting new rules to ensure transactions on regulated exchanges are taxed.
- A bill outlining a framework for taxing crypto and introducing other levies is under legislative review and is expected to pass this quarter.
- The SEC acknowledges the potential for significant tax revenue but hasn’t provided estimates.
Zoom in
- Nigeria’s young, tech-savvy population has embraced crypto as a hedge against inflation and naira depreciation.
- President Bola Tinubu has pushed fiscal reforms since taking office in 2023 to boost government revenue and reduce the deficit.
- Lawmakers recently approved a ₦54.99 trillion ($36.4 billion) budget for 2025.
What’s next
- The SEC plans to expand crypto licensing to formal centralized exchanges, enabling better monitoring and taxation.
- “We anticipate gradual traction toward centralized exchanges because they will provide greater protections and comfort for investors,” the SEC said.
Source: Bloomberg
