ABUJA, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-President Bola Tinubu has signed an Executive Order creating a coordinated regulatory framework for virtual assets in Nigeria, a move designed to enhance oversight of the country’s expanding digital asset sector, safeguard investors and combat financial crimes.
In a statement issued on Friday, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, takes immediate effect and was signed pursuant to Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution.
Onanuga explained that the directive was introduced to address regulatory overlaps as virtual assets increasingly fall within the jurisdictions of financial, revenue and capital market regulators.
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He said the framework would strengthen collaboration among relevant agencies, plug regulatory gaps exploited by fraudulent operators and encourage responsible innovation within the digital economy.
According to him, the lack of coordinated oversight had exposed Nigeria to risks such as money laundering, terrorism financing, cybersecurity threats, data privacy violations, fraud and loss of government revenue.
“Too often, unregistered and fraudulent operators have exploited these gaps to prey on unsuspecting Nigerians, costing families their savings,” he added.
To reinforce oversight, the Executive Order establishes a Virtual Asset Council, to be chaired by the Central Bank of Nigeria, while the Nigeria Revenue Service and the Securities and Exchange Commission will serve as vice-chairmen.
Other members of the council include the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The council will be responsible for providing policy direction, coordinating regulatory activities among participating agencies and collaborating with the Attorney General of the Federation to develop a harmonised legal and institutional framework for the sector.
The order also establishes a Virtual Asset Office, which will be domiciled at the CBN and function as the operational secretariat. The office will coordinate information sharing, process applications and facilitate reporting among relevant agencies through an integrated supervisory technology platform.
Onanuga emphasised that the directive does not establish a new regulator or remove the statutory powers of existing agencies.
“The Executive Order does not create a new regulator or transfer powers between agencies. Each institution retains its full statutory mandate and independence.
“Instead, regulatory responsibilities will continue to be determined by the nature of the virtual asset or service involved,” he added.
Under the new framework, virtual assets classified as securities will remain under the regulation of the Securities and Exchange Commission, while payment, settlement, custody and other services involving non-security virtual assets will continue to be supervised by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The council will resolve cases where regulatory jurisdiction is uncertain.
As part of the reforms, the CBN will introduce a regulatory sandbox to enable eligible operators to test virtual asset products, blockchain technologies and related services under regulatory supervision before they are launched into the broader market.
According to Onanuga, the initiative will enable regulators to evaluate the impact of emerging technologies on financial stability, monetary policy, consumer protection, financial inclusion and government revenue.
He added that the Nigeria Revenue Service would unveil a tax policy for the virtual assets sector to clarify the application of existing tax laws, improve voluntary compliance and ensure digital asset transactions contribute to government revenue.
Onanuga further disclosed that the Federal Government is finalising a comprehensive Virtual Assets White Paper to define Nigeria’s long-term policy direction and implementation priorities for the sector.
He added that the newly inaugurated Virtual Asset Council has been directed to produce a Harmonised Implementation Framework within 30 days to guide participating agencies in implementing the Executive Order.