Nigeria, Binance in early-stage talks for crypto-friendly economic zone

by · September 4, 2022

The Nigerian government has held a preliminary meeting with crypto exchange Binance to potentially establish a special economic zone aimed at supporting crypto and blockchain-related businesses.

According to a September 2 post by the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), the authority has held preliminary talks with Binance and technology infrastructure company Talent City to discuss the proposed digital city, referred to as a “Virtual Free Zone.”

NEPZA CEO Adesoji Adesugba said the proposed zone would be the first in West Africa and function similar to Dubai’s virtual zones, which are designed to provide crypto-friendly laws, regulations and tax incentives for crypto businesses.

Nigeria has one of the highest cryptocurrency adoption rates worldwide, with over 22 million crypto owners according to Triple A.

Adesugba said the zone would help develop Nigeria’s digital economy and “expand employment opportunities” for Nigerian citizens, saying:

“Our goal is to create a thriving virtual free zone to take advantage of a nearly trillion dollar virtual economy in blockchain and digital economy.”

The early plans were discussed on Friday during a meeting between Adesugba, Binance CEO Nadeem Ladki, Talent City CEO Luqman Edu and NEPZA Director Sikiru Lawal in Dubai.

Adesugba added that the move would be part of Nigeria’s economic development agenda, with the vision of further driving crypto adoption in the West African region.

“We seek to break new grounds to expand economic opportunities for our citizens in line with the mandate of the authority, the directive of the honorable minister and the economic development agenda of President Muhammadu Buhari,” he said.

Related: Safe Space: A Guide to Special Economic Zones for Crypto, From China to Switzerland

driven by an inadequate financial system and unstable government policies and inflation, crypto adoption across Africa has continued to increase in recent years.

A recent CoinGecko survey found that Nigerian residents are the most crypto-obsessed nation, having searched the terms “cryptocurrency” and “buy crypto” more than any of the other 14 countries surveyed.

Nigeria also launched eNaira in October 2021 – the nation’s first central bank digital currency (CBDC), which is currently in its second phase and aims to drive financial inclusion by bringing unbanked citizens of Nigeria.

Cointelegraph has reached out to Binance for more details on the discussions, but did not immediately receive a response.