Nigeria’s tax authority intends to draft a measure to govern the cryptocurrency industry by the end of 2024.
According to a Vanguard report, FIRS Executive Chairman Zacch Adedeji stated that the nation is prepared to introduce legislation that would introduce regulations to regulate the cryptocurrency industry, reduce associated risks, and enhance the country’s economy during a recent stakeholder engagement session with the Finance Committees of the National Assembly.
Zacch Adedeji, Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, stated:
Today, we cannot run away from cryptocurrency. But as we are here today, there is no law anywhere in Nigeria that regulates cryptocurrency. But it is the new thing that is happening, and we cannot run away from them.”
The new rule is a component of a larger initiative to update the tax code to keep up with Nigeria’s changing economic environment.
In order to put the measure into effect, Adedeji asked the FIRS to work with legislators; the first version is anticipated to be tabled in September.
Senator Mohammed Musa, the Senate Committee on Finance chairman, also spoke during the session.
He said that the bill would introduce regulations to help Nigeria raise money to develop its human capital and infrastructure. Musa acknowledged that cryptocurrencies have become the “largest way of making money.”
The newest declaration comes in response to requests made by Wale Edun, Niegria’s Finance Minister, for the newly established Securities and Exchange Commission board in Nigeria to concentrate on regulating the cryptocurrency industry.
The seven-member SEC board, which President Bola Tinubu approved in April, has unveiled a compliance program designed to assist cryptocurrency enterprises in adhering to regional laws.
In addition, the commission declared that it will be incorporating Virtual Assets Service Providers into its redesigned digital asset issuance procedure.
The nation in West Africa has likewise focused on implementing blockchain technology. The National Blockchain Policy Steering Committee, a government-appointed group that monitors the development and regulation of blockchain technology within Nigeria, was recently reformed by the National Information Technology Development Agency, the nation’s regulator of the IT sector.
The NITDA recently revealed plans to set up research centres throughout Nigeria, concentrating on essential technologies like artificial intelligence and blockchain.
Cryptocurrencies have emerged as a lifeline for developing nations like Nigeria, whose economic hardships have forced citizens to look for other ways to save their wealth.
This increased reliance has brought attention to regulating the cryptocurrency industry, which is sometimes marred by illegal activity. As was previously mentioned, Ghana, another important regional actor, also unveiled draft guidelines to deal with similar issues.
