The government of Nigeria is preparing to introduce new regulations to ban peer-to-peer (P2P) cryptocurrency exchange using the national currency, the Nigerian naira.

Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is set to launch a new regulatory framework for crypto exchanges, custodians and other industry firms “in the coming days,” Bloomberg reported on May 7.

According to SEC Director General Emomotimi Agama, the new regulations aim to delist the naira from P2P exchanges in order to protect the local currency from manipulation. He stated:

“Recent concerns regarding crypto P2P traders and their perceived impact on the exchange rate of the naira has underscored the need for collective action.”

The news follows a local ban issued to the global cryptocurrency exchange Binance and the arrests of its executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, in Nigeria in February 2024.

Gambaryan, who has been jailed at the Kuje correctional center in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, will go on trial on May 17, facing charges of tax evasion, currency speculation and money laundering.

This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.