Crypto Chaos Forces Africa to Tighten Rules

The African crypto landscape is booming, but it’s not all good news. In 2024, Sub-Saharan Africa saw digital asset flows hit a staggering $125 billion — up by $7.5 billion from the previous year, according to Chainalysis. Nigeria alone accounts for a large share, with ConsenSys reporting 106 million cryptocurrency holders across the country.

However, this growth has come with painful lessons. Many are falling prey to underregulated platforms. A glaring example is CBEX, a fraudulent Ponzi scheme that recently collapsed in Nigeria and Kenya, taking investors — including popular Fuji musician Taye Currency — by surprise. He admitted losing ₦10 million after friends convinced him to invest.

“I thought I was joining something real, but it turned out to be a trap,” he lamented. The fallout exposed a growing problem: users diving into crypto with little financial literacy or understanding of the risks

Why Regulators Are Catching Up Fast

For a region grappling with inflation and limited access to global currencies, digital assets — particularly stablecoins — have offered a practical way to store value and manage cross-border payments. In fact, stablecoins now account for 43% of transaction volume in Sub-Saharan Africa. Countries like Ethiopia are seeing a spike in small stablecoin transfers, highlighting crypto’s appeal as a survival tool, not just an investment.

Still, this financial shift comes at a cost. Regulators are now sounding the alarm. Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission has flagged concerns about issuing crypto licences without rigorous checks. South Africa’s Financial Intelligence Centre has warned about virtual asset providers being used for criminal transactions. The signals are clear: without stricter frameworks, crypto’s risks could outweigh its benefits.

The Nigerian government has already taken steps. In a major policy move, President Bola Tinubu signed the Investments and Securities Bill 2025 into law. This legislation places crypto assets under the control of the Securities and Exchange Commission, paving the way for safer market participation.

Despite the optimism, crypto’s unstable nature hasn’t gone away. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, global digital currency markets lost $633.5 billion. Trading volumes dropped by over 27%, triggered by economic concerns and high-profile breaches like the Bybit hack. For African investors — many of whom are new to the market — these shocks hit hard.

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