President Bola Tinubu’s recent appeal for Nigeria’s judiciary to enhance its understanding of cryptocurrency signals a progressive move for a nation often caught between fostering innovation and enforcing regulation.
Delivered via Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima at a judicial workshop organized by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the National Judicial Institute (NJI), the President emphasized the need for judges and justices to grasp blockchain technology and digital assets. This knowledge, he argued, is vital for effectively addressing complex financial crimes in today’s digital era.
This acknowledgment reflects the reality that both commerce and criminal activities have increasingly shifted online. However, Senator Ihenyen, Lead Partner at Infusion Lawyers and Executive Chair of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Association (VASPA), believes the President’s message, while positive, overlooks a critical dimension.
“President Tinubu’s encouragement for the judiciary to deepen its expertise in blockchain and cryptocurrencies to tackle sophisticated financial crimes is both timely and necessary,” Ihenyen shared in a discussion with Technext. “It recognizes that conventional judicial approaches are insufficient in the face of digital transformation.”
Yet, he cautioned that framing crypto education solely through the lens of crime prevention risks perpetuating a narrow stereotype that paints Nigeria’s crypto ecosystem predominantly as a hub for illicit activities, rather than a space ripe with opportunity.
“Given the current state of crypto adoption and licensing frameworks in Nigeria, the approach outlined in the speech lacks a comprehensive perspective,” he noted. “This could lead to reactive policies rather than establishing a robust foundation for effective regulation and enforcement.”
Tracing Nigeria’s Cryptocurrency Evolution
Nigeria’s journey with cryptocurrency is marked by remarkable grassroots adoption, positioning the country as a global leader despite regulatory challenges.
Chainalysis’ recent Geography of Cryptocurrency report highlights that Nigeria accounted for $92.1 billion in on-chain transactions from July 2024 to June 2025, nearly half of Sub-Saharan Africa’s total $205 billion. For many Nigerians-freelancers, entrepreneurs, and digitally savvy youth-cryptocurrency serves as a vital economic lifeline rather than a tool for illicit gain.
“The narrative around crypto in Nigeria is one of resilience and community engagement, not crime,” Ihenyen explained. “While criminal elements exist, as they do worldwide, Nigeria consistently ranks among the top nations for grassroots crypto adoption.”
The driving forces behind this trend are economic realities rather than unlawful intent. “Crypto usage here stems largely from macroeconomic pressures and barriers to traditional financial services,” he added. “People rely on digital assets for legitimate activities such as investments, payments, remittances, cross-border commerce, and participation in the global digital economy. These legitimate uses demand thoughtful regulation, not knee-jerk reactions.”
This distinction is crucial. Ihenyen warns that if judicial training focuses narrowly on crypto-related fraud, it risks reinforcing Nigeria’s existing “negative enforcement and regulatory bias.”
“If judges perceive cryptocurrencies solely as instruments of crime,” he said, “their decisions could unintentionally suppress legitimate economic activities, driving the market back underground, undoing progress made in formalizing the sector.”
Beyond perception, the core issue lies in policy inconsistency. Nigeria’s regulatory stance on digital assets has been fragmented and often contradictory.
In 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued a directive prohibiting banks from processing crypto-related transactions, effectively isolating crypto exchanges and startups from the formal banking system.
Two years later, the CBN introduced Guidelines for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), partially reversing its earlier stance and cautiously reopening the market. Simultaneously, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) unveiled its own regulatory framework for digital assets.
In March 2025, President Tinubu enacted the updated Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2025, categorizing digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, as securities under the SEC’s jurisdiction.
Despite these developments, Ihenyen points out that regulatory frameworks remain disjointed and restrictive. “Although the CBN’s easing of restrictions in late 2023 was a positive move, the licensing requirements for VASPs are still prohibitively expensive and complex for many local innovators,” he said. “High capital thresholds and fees pose significant barriers for startups in this emerging sector.”
He further emphasized that such regulatory uncertainty undermines the judiciary’s ability to effectively adjudicate crypto-related cases.
“It is counterintuitive to expect the judiciary to master a subject area when the executive and regulatory bodies have yet to establish clear, harmonized rules,” he remarked.
Indeed, Nigeria’s digital asset policies continue to fluctuate, with crackdowns on peer-to-peer trading and ambiguous legal definitions for stablecoins complicating judicial interpretation. “Judges cannot apply consistent legal precedents when the foundational regulatory classifications are unstable or when market entry barriers remain high,” Ihenyen explained.
His recommendation is clear: legislative clarity must come first. “The government should prioritize enacting a comprehensive, unified national VASP Act or an all-encompassing digital asset regulatory framework,” he urged.
“Such clarity should precede or coincide with judicial training, providing judges with a dependable legal foundation to interpret cases. This is the essence of upholding the rule of law.”
Shifting Focus: From Enforcement to Digital Empowerment
For Ihenyen, Nigeria’s current emphasis on enforcement overlooks a broader potential: leveraging blockchain technology to enhance governance, operational efficiency, and transparency.
“The predominant focus on combating crime positions the government reactively,” he observed. “However, the transformative nature of blockchain calls for a proactive strategy to unlock its benefits.”
He stressed that blockchain’s value extends far beyond cryptocurrencies and financial speculation. “Blockchain represents a foundational digital infrastructure capable of revolutionizing secure record-keeping, land registries, supply chain management, identity verification, and public administration,” he said.
He envisions the Tinubu administration championing blockchain adoption within the public sector to boost transparency. “The President’s Office has a unique opportunity to promote blockchain integration across government agencies,” Ihenyen noted.
Achieving this, however, demands a coordinated national strategy. “The President’s call should evolve into a comprehensive National Virtual Asset Strategy,” he proposed, “building on the groundwork laid by the National Blockchain Adoption Policy of 2023.”
This strategy, he explained, should encompass judicial and law enforcement education, regulatory capacity enhancement, streamlined licensing for innovators, and government-led blockchain implementation to improve efficiency and accountability.
Senator Ihenyen’s perspective resonates widely within Nigeria’s tech community: the country’s digital future hinges less on restrictive control and more on clear, consistent frameworks.
“Educating judges is vital for addressing crypto-related crimes,” he concluded. “Yet, genuine digital competence requires more than enforcement. The judiciary is the final link in the chain; the foundation must be a supportive business environment coupled with a transparent, accessible regulatory system.”
While President Tinubu’s push for crypto literacy marks a pivotal moment, without a coherent policy framework, both the judiciary and Nigeria at large may find it challenging to strike a balance between fostering innovation and ensuring oversight.
As Ihenyen aptly summarized, “Only through clear rules and trust can we cultivate integrity, transparency, and accountability-cornerstones for sustainable growth and a resilient economy.”
0 Comments