The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Thursday, 5 November 2026, issued a 169‑page set of regulations that impose a minimum paid‑up capital of N15 billion on any company that wishes to issue foreign‑currency‑backed stablecoins, such as USDT and USDC, within the country. The rules, signed by Musa Jimoh, Director of the CBN’s Payments System Policy Department, aim to tighten oversight of Nigeria’s expanding virtual‑asset market.
The new framework establishes a risk‑based licensing and authorisation regime for stablecoin issuers, virtual‑asset service providers, deposit‑money token operators, and a range of related activities, including peer‑to‑peer platforms, custody, transfers, remittances, and clearing and settlement. It also sets out requirements for capital adequacy, reserve backing, liquidity, redemption, corporate governance, risk management, cybersecurity and operational resilience.
According to the CBN, the capital threshold is intended to ensure that stablecoin issuers have sufficient financial capacity and reserves to meet customer obligations, thereby bolstering confidence in these digital assets and reducing the risk of poorly managed operations. The regulation further mandates compliance with anti‑money‑laundering, counter‑terrorist‑financing and counter‑proliferation‑financing obligations, including sanctions screening, transaction monitoring, blockchain analytics and the Travel Rule for virtual‑asset transfers.
The CBN clarified that the new rules do not supersede the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) statutory responsibilities. Virtual assets that qualify as securities, investment contracts or other capital‑market products will remain subject to the SEC’s regulatory framework, and activities involving both non‑security virtual assets and matters under another authority will require approvals from each competent regulator.
Stakeholders—including financial institutions, issuers, service providers and promoters—have been directed to familiarise themselves with the requirements and ensure full compliance with licensing, prudential, operational, reporting, AML and customer‑protection standards. The regulation follows President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s July 2026 executive order on virtual assets, reflecting the government’s broader effort to regulate Nigeria’s digital‑payment ecosystem.
<small>Source: Daily Post Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>
