President Bola Tinubu has signed an executive order to establish a unified regulatory framework for virtual assets across Nigeria, with the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Revenue Service and Securities and Exchange Commission leading the charge. The Presidency made the announcement on Friday, noting that the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, came into force immediately.
In a statement from Bayo Onanuga, the president's special adviser on information and strategy, the government explained that the move seeks to align how virtual assets are regulated, boost cooperation between financial watchdogs, shield Nigerians from scams and foster responsible innovation.
The rapid growth of virtual assets has muddied the lines between traditional currencies, money, commodities and securities, creating overlapping and conflicting rules, according to the statement. Weak collaboration between agencies has left Nigeria exposed to money laundering, terrorist financing, cybercrime, fraud and lost tax revenue, officials said.
"Unregistered and fraudulent operators have repeatedly used these gaps to target unsuspecting Nigerians, wiping out family savings," the statement read.
To fix the problem, the order sets up a Virtual Asset Council headed by the CBN, with the NRS and SEC as vice-chairs. The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and Office of the National Security Adviser will also sit on the council.
The council will set policy direction, boost coordination among agencies and work with the attorney-general to craft a unified legal and institutional framework for the sector, Onanuga said. A separate Virtual Asset Office will be created within the CBN to manage information sharing, applications and reporting between agencies.
Onanuga stressed that the framework doesn't establish a new regulator or strip powers from existing institutions. "Each institution keeps its full statutory mandate and independence, and the framework coordinates their work rather than replacing it," the statement said.
Under the new setup, the SEC will oversee virtual assets classified as securities, while the CBN will supervise payment, settlement, custody and other services tied to non-security virtual assets. The Virtual Asset Council will decide which agency handles cases where jurisdiction isn't clear.
The CBN is also moving forward with plans to launch a regulatory sandbox for the virtual assets industry, Onanuga noted. The sandbox will let qualified operators test virtual asset products, blockchain-based services and other innovations under regulatory watch before rolling them out to the public.
"It'll help ensure that innovations reaching Nigerians have been properly examined and supervised," the spokesperson said. Further details on the sandbox are set to come from the central bank.
The Nigeria Revenue Service will also roll out additional measures to support the framework, the statement added.
