Nigeria’s president-elect promises to champion blockchain in revenue collection, banking
Nigeria is Africa’s largest market for digital assets and is among the global leaders in Bitcoin adoption. However, the government has tried to slow the adoption of digital assets through restrictive regulations. The country’s president-elect promises to do better and champion the adoption of blockchain technology and digital assets.
Bola Tinubu was declared the winner of the February 25 election, receiving 37% of the vote. The seasoned politician and former Lagos governor, known as the ‘Political Godfather’, takes over from Muhammad Buhari, under whose regime banks were banned from servicing digital asset firms.
But despite being political allies under the same party, Tinubu has promised to support new technologies, including blockchain.
“We will reform government policies to encourage the proper use of blockchain technology in finance and banking, identity management, revenue collection and the use of crypto assets,” Tinubu says in his 80-page manifesto.
Nigeria has stifled digital asset growth through regulations and decrees, such as the central bank’s directive to commercial banks to refrain from servicing virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) criticized the opacity of digital assets, which it claimed makes them well suited “to carry out many illegal activities, including money laundering, financing of terrorism, purchase of small arms and light weapons and tax evasion.”
In recent times, the anti-Bitcoin stance has softened. Last December, it emerged that lawmakers were debating a new bill that would legalize digital assets in the West African nation.
Tinubu, who takes office on May 29, has promised Nigerians that this Bitcoin-friendly direction will be maintained under his leadership.
“As part of our reforms, we will establish an advisory committee to review the existing regulatory environment governing blockchain technology and virtual asset services and, where necessary, propose changes to create a more efficient and business-friendly regulatory framework,” the manifesto said his.
The president-elect will also push Africa’s first central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eNaira. eNaira has seen slow adoption in a country that boasts of being the world’s seventh most populous country. The CBN recently revealed that it is looking for new technology partners to fix the digital currency.
“We will also encourage the CBN to expand the use of our digital currency, Enaira,” Tinubu’s manifesto said.
Apart from the direct efforts to push Bitcoin adoption, Tinubu promised to follow the National Broadband Plan which aims to deliver broadband services to 90% of the 206 million Nigerians. This ambitious goal will play a significant role in Bitcoin adoption as internet connectivity continues to be among Africa’s biggest obstacles. In Nigeria, only 38% of the population is connected to the internet.
See: Blockchain in Africa
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