Business

SEC to Licence Crypto Exchanges as FIRS Seeks Regulation

Published

2 years ago

August 20, 2024

400 Views

The Abuja-based Securities and Exchange Commission is looking to issue its first licenses for digital service and tokenized assets this month, Director-General Emomotimi Agama said.

“Being a crypto enthusiast and fintech enthusiast, I can tell you without doubt that this is going to happen sooner than you think,” Agama said in an interview on Bloomberg Television.

“We must support the youths of this country to be able to achieve the benefit that is accruable in fintech.

The market size is huge and it is growing. The figure is just “the tip of the iceberg’ considering many transactions are not reported, Agama said.

He said that the SEC wants “to provide a platform where people can formerly do these things and we can get all of the information that we need.

“What we will not encourage is the use of cryptocurrency to manipulate our currency,” Agama said.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, said that an Executive Bill which seeks to overhaul revenue administration in Nigeria, including regulation of the cryptocurrency industry, is being put together for transmission to the National Assembly.

Adedeji, during a stakeholders’ engagement with a joint committee of the National Assembly on Finance, said: “We cannot run away from the cryptocurrency ecosystem because it is the in-thing.

But as it stands in Nigeria today, no law regulates cryptocurrency operations. We need a law that regulates that area of our economy.

This is why we are having this engagement with the legislators. We will regulate it in a way that is not injurious to the economic development of Nigeria.

“Bloomberg commented that the start of regulation will align Nigeria with other jurisdictions, including the European Union, South Africa and Botswana, which have taken steps to govern the asset class.

Regulators across the globe are seeking better ways to rein in crypto following a 2022 crash in prices that led to a slew of bankruptcies, scandals and billions in investor losses.

Nigerian authorities banned banks from supporting crypto transactions due to concerns that traders on digital-currency platforms are manipulating the exchange rate for the naira, which has depreciated about 70% against the dollar since June last year.

The government in February blocked access to the world’s biggest crypto exchange operated by Binance Holdings Ltd. and later prosecuted its executives over allegations of illicit flows and speculation on the naira, which it said deprived the nation of tax revenue and weakened the local currency.

The crackdown on Binance hasn’t deterred young, tech-savvy Nigerians, who have moved to the Bitkoin Africa Inc. and Quidax platforms for their Bitcoin transactions, Agama said in June.

The volume of crypto transactions in the country climbed 9% to $56.7 billion in June 2023 from a year earlier, Chainalysis said in a report.

Business

Naira Exchange Rates Friday, 3 July 2026

Published

3 days ago

July 3, 2026

OCHEFA

35 Views

BLACK MARKET RATES

US DOLLAR (USD) Buy ₦1, 397 Sell ₦1,405

GREAT BRITISH POUND (GBP) Buy ₦1,850 Sell: ₦1,865

EURO (EUR) Buy ₦1, 580 Sell ₦1,600

CANADIAN DOLLAR (CAD) Buy ₦1,030 Sell ₦1,100

SOUTH AFRICAN RAND (ZAR) Buy ₦75 Sell ₦90

UAE DIRHAM Buy ₦350 Sell ₦370

CHINESE YUAN Buy ₦180 Sell ₦200

GHANA CEDI (GHS) Buy ₦95 Sell ₦110

WEST AFRICAN CFA Buy ₦2, 380 Sell ₦2, 460

CENTRAL AFRICAN CFA Buy ₦2, 220 Sell 2,300

AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR Buy ₦800 Sell ₦900

CBN OFFICIAL EXCHANGE RATES

US DOLLAR (USD) ₦1,370.15

GREAT BRITISH POUND (GBP) ₦1,832.17

EURO (EUR) ₦1,568.28

SWISS FRANC (CHF) ₦1,1705.44

JAPANESE YEN (JPN) ₦8. 51

CHINESE YUAN (CNY) ₦201. 80

WEST AFRICAN CFA (XOF) ₦2.38

WEST AFRICAN UNIT ACCOUNT (WAUA) ₦1,859. 98

SAUDI RIYAL (SAR) ₦364.91

SOUTH AFRICAN RAND (ZAR) ₦84. 32

Business

Issue: Cloning Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC)

Published

4 days ago

July 2, 2026

OCHEFA

55 Views

The Presidency says the bodies allegedly used by Adeyemi—including the so-called Presidential Economic Advisory Council, Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, and Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council—do not exist as government agencies.

The Presidency says a man identified as Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew allegedly created and operated fake government agencies, forged appointment letters, and falsely claimed to have been appointed by Femi Gbajabiamila.
According to the statement:
The Office of the Chief of Staff discovered the alleged scheme after complaints from the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) that an unauthorized body was operating in a way that conflicted with its functions.

The Chief of Staff petitioned the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force in October 2025 to investigate alleged forged appointment letters.

The Presidency says the bodies allegedly used by Adeyemi—including the so-called Presidential Economic Advisory Council, Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, and Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council—do not exist as government agencies.

Investigators allege Adeyemi operated from an office in the Federal Secretariat Complex, held meetings with diplomats, and sought diplomatic support to obtain U.S. visas for members of the alleged organization.
Police reportedly recovered forged documents and other exhibits during searches of his office and residence.

The investigation allegedly found that Adeyemi operated 34 bank accounts, including several in the names of fictitious organizations, and used forged documents to open a Central Bank of Nigeria account.

The Presidency says no government funds were paid into that account.
Police charged Adeyemi and two others before the Federal High Court on multiple counts, including forgery, impersonation, and obtaining by false pretence. The case is scheduled for hearing on July 27.

The Presidency also denied claims that Gbajabiamila appointed Adeyemi, stating that appointments to federal offices are issued through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, not the Office of the Chief of Staff.

Current status

The Presidency maintains that:
the agencies in question are fictitious,
the appointment letter was forged,
Adeyemi is an impostor,
and the allegations against him should be resolved by the court.

As the case is pending before the court, the allegations remain subject to judicial determination.