Tinubu Signs Executive Order to Regulate Crypto, Virtual Assets in Nigeria

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed an Executive Order establishing a coordinated regulatory framework for Nigeria's virtual assets sector, marking one of the government's most significant policy interventions in the country's rapidly expanding digital economy.

The Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, which takes immediate effect, is designed to harmonise the regulation of cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets, strengthen cooperation among financial regulators, protect investors from fraud and improve oversight of the sector without creating a new regulatory agency.

According to the Presidency, the Executive Order was issued under Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution and seeks to address longstanding overlaps and gaps in the supervision of virtual assets, whose rapid evolution has increasingly blurred the boundaries between currencies, securities, commodities and payment systems.

The Executive Order establishes a Virtual Asset Council, chaired by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) serving as vice-chairpersons.

Other members include the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

The council will provide strategic policy direction, coordinate regulatory actions among participating agencies and work with the Attorney-General of the Federation to develop a harmonised legal and institutional framework for the sector.

The government said the framework is intended to align virtual asset regulation with Nigeria's broader economic, financial and national security objectives.

The Presidency stressed that the Executive Order does not establish a new regulator or transfer statutory powers from existing agencies.

Instead, each institution will retain its existing legal mandate while operating within a coordinated supervisory framework.

Under the new arrangement, regulatory responsibility will depend on the nature of the digital asset or service involved.

Virtual assets that qualify as securities will remain under the jurisdiction of the SEC, while payment, settlement, custody and related services involving non-security virtual assets will be regulated by the CBN.

Where uncertainty exists over regulatory jurisdiction, the newly established council will determine the appropriate supervising agency.

The government said this approach is intended to close regulatory loopholes that have previously allowed unregistered operators to avoid oversight.

To support implementation, the Executive Order also creates a Virtual Asset Office, which will serve as the operational arm of the council.

The office, whose secretariat will be domiciled at the CBN, will coordinate information sharing, regulatory applications and reporting among participating agencies.

It will also oversee an integrated supervisory technology platform designed to improve collaboration while allowing each agency to maintain ownership and control of its own data.

As part of the new framework, the CBN will launch a regulatory sandbox that will allow eligible virtual asset companies to test products, services and blockchain-based innovations under close regulatory supervision.

According to the Presidency, the sandbox will enable regulators to evaluate the potential impact of emerging technologies on monetary policy, financial stability, consumer protection, financial inclusion, cybersecurity and market integrity before such products are introduced to the wider market.

Further operational guidelines for the sandbox are expected to be announced by the CBN.

The Nigerian Revenue Service will also publish a dedicated tax policy for the virtual assets sector.

The government said the policy will clarify the application of existing tax laws to digital assets, improve compliance and ensure that the sector contributes appropriately to government revenue as it expands.

In addition, the Federal Government disclosed that work is nearing completion on a comprehensive Virtual Assets White Paper, which will outline Nigeria's long-term policy direction, implementation priorities and strategic roadmap for the industry.

President Tinubu has directed the newly established Virtual Asset Council to develop a harmonised implementation framework within 30 days.

The Presidency said the framework will guide participating agencies in implementing the Executive Order and accelerate the rollout of Nigeria's new coordinated approach to regulating virtual assets.

Government officials said the initiative is intended to strike a balance between encouraging innovation in the digital economy and strengthening safeguards against money laundering, terrorism financing, cybercrime, fraud, data privacy breaches and revenue leakages that have emerged as the sector has grown.