Nigerians have been warned by the Central Bank of Nigeria to steer clear of trading or getting involved in cryptocurrencies as it has been declared as a non-legal tender, according to Business Insider. In a recent statement by the CBN’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor, the apex bank reiterates that cryptocurrencies are neither licensed nor regulated by the CBN, hence, it is not a legal tender in Nigeria.
“Further to the circular issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on January 12, 2017, to Banks and other financial institutions on virtual currency operations in Nigeria, the Bank wishes to reiterate that cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ripples, Monero, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Onecoin, etc and Exchanges such as NairaEx are not licensed or regulated by the CBN,” the statement reads.
The apex bank also noted that for the avoidance of doubt, dealers and investors in any kind of cryptocurrency in Nigeria are not protected by law. Okoroafor said that because virtual currencies are traded in exchange platforms that are unregulated, all over the world, the CBN does not support its existence or usage in Nigeria.
“Virtual currencies are traded in exchange platforms that are unregulated, all over the world, consumers may therefore lose their money without any legal redress in the event these exchangers collapse or close business,” the statement further stated.
Nigerians or visitors coming into Nigeria have been further warned that virtual currencies are not legal tender in Nigeria. The apex bank also wish to caution all and sundry on the risks inherent in such activities.
This new blow is coming after Bitcoin fell below $9,000 on Wednesday morning, March 14, 2018 after Google dealt a blow to the global cryptocurrency market. Google announced in a blog post on Wednesday morning that it is joining Facebook in banning all cryptocurrency related adverts from its platforms.
The news has dented sentiment and cryptocurrencies are falling as a result. Bitcoin is down 4.1% against the dollar to $8,775.39 at 10.55 a.m. GMT (6.55 a.m. ET), Ethereum is down 3.3% to $666.77, Ripple is down 3.8% to $0.74, and Bitcoin Cash is down 3.2% to $1,018.25.
Cryptocurrencies are falling again on Thursday morning, March 15, 2018 amid continued bearish sentiment in the market.
Bitcoin dropped below $8,000 to a five-week low and the rest of the market is following its lead. Here's the scoreboard at 7.15 a.m. GMT (3.15 a.m. ET):
Bitcoin is down 3.6% against the dollar to $7,906.21
Ethereum is down 3.5% to $590.42
Ripple is down 5.8% to $0.64
Bitcoin Cash is down 5.5% to $892.73
Litecoin is down 3.1% to $155.72
