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From 5 November, foreign stablecoin issuers seeking Nigerian retail customers have had to establish a licensed operation in Nigeria under rules from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The framework also separates permission to issue a token from authorisation for payments and money transfers.
Foreign issuers need local entities
The CBN groups stablecoins by the currency they track: Class 1 covers naira-linked tokens, while Class 2 covers tokens tied to other currencies, including dollar-backed USDT and USDC. An overseas issuer targeting local retail customers must create a Nigerian company, secure a Class 2 issuer licence and obtain CBN clearance for its token. The requirements apply even if the business has no physical presence in Nigeria.
The local issuer must hold at least NGN15 billion in paid-up capital, approximately $11.1 million, and keep liquidity available for redemptions in Nigeria. Reserves must consist of assets in the currency referenced by the token, with a further 2% buffer. The issuer also has to appoint a Nigerian bank to handle redemption requests made locally.
Payment services need separate approval
Supervision is split between the SEC and the CBN. The SEC oversees trading and custody linked to investment activity; the CBN is responsible for payment and money-transfer services. An SEC-licensed crypto platform may list a token or hold it for clients trading it, but customer transfers, stored-value products, payment gateways, merchant payments and remittances each require the relevant CBN authorisation.
Approval for one service does not automatically extend to another: an exchange or custodian cannot treat its licence as permission for P2P or cross-border payment activity. Providers that do not issue tokens must also hold at least NGN1 billion in extra capital, approximately $741,000.
A platform regulated by the SEC cannot count the same funds towards both regulators' capital requirements. Naira conversions involving foreign-currency stablecoins may also need an approved foreign-exchange route, transaction reporting and specific CBN approval.
What an operations team should check
Chainalysis put Nigerian crypto activity at $38.1 billion between July 2025 and June 2026, just below South Africa's $39.3 billion. Nigeria placed third in its global grassroots adoption index.
The same study found that stablecoin volume through peer-to-peer channels rose more than sixfold between 2022 and 2026, from $2.3 billion to $14.6 billion. The rules were first reported by Finance Magnates.
Existing operators have 180 days to apply, must register within 30 days and must start supervisory reporting within 60 days. During the transition, they can operate only at their current scale.
Teams should map each token and service to the required issuer, SEC or CBN approval, then check how capital is allocated and how local redemptions reach the appointed bank. They should also establish which foreign-exchange channel and reporting process apply to conversions. The rules do not specify the reporting format or the detailed steps for those workflows, so operators will need to confirm those requirements with the relevant regulator.
