The executive secretary of the Nigerian Blockchain Association (SiBAN), Rume Ophi, said that the Nigerian authorities are taking an impractical approach to the crypto industry. In particular, the government believes that it was international crypto platforms that contributed to the depreciation of the naira. Due to the rapid devaluation of the currency and, as a result, the high inflation rate of 29.9%, which reached a nearly thirty-year high, the Nigerian government has intensified its persecution of cryptocurrency platforms.
According to Ofi, Nigeria could effectively regulate the cryptocurrency industry with the help of a structure introduced by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria (SEC) in 2022. The agency was developing a pilot program for the turnover of tokenized assets and was ready to recognize cryptocurrencies as capital for investment.
Iwa Salami, an associate professor at the University of East London, is also sure that the Nigerian authorities unfairly blame cryptocurrencies for the devaluation of the naira, despite the fact that cryptocurrencies can be used for money laundering and drug trafficking. Instead of a complete ban on digital assets, the Nigerian authorities should develop a balanced regulation of the industry, Salame noted. This will allow the country to achieve the prosperity of the crypto industry without compromising the financial and economic stability of the country. The rules governing crypto assets should protect both crypto companies and investors, the associate professor is sure.
Now the Nigerian authorities are holding under arrest the top manager of the largest crypto exchange Binance Tigran Gambaryan (Tigran Gambaryan). He was detained on charges of money laundering through cryptocurrencies and tax evasion. Recently, former U.S. federal prosecutors demanded that the administration of President Joe Biden speed up the release of Gambarian.