Nigeria and the United States governments are working on comprehensive, unified and business friendly regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency and broader virtual asset industry.
The Nigerian government, through its Revenue Service (NRS) is working on a unified and business friendly regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency and broader virtual asset industry.
For instance, as part of measures to track all transactions in the crypto industry, the NRS in its new guidelines on the Taxation of Virtual Assets released last week, imposed a duty on supervised VASP and operators of all centralized exchanges and P2P marketplaces to operate as collecting agents for stamp duties (i.e., electronic transactional duties/levies), VAT, and withholding taxes on the transaction activities of virtual assets.
At the second edition of the Nigeria Stablecoin Summit in Lagos, Deputy Director and Tax Controller of the Non-Resident Persons Tax Office at the NRS, Oni Olushola said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), NRS and the Presidency are now aligned on creating an enabling environment for virtual asset businesses in Nigeria.
The tax agency’s released new Guidelines places up to 30% tax obligations on medium and large virtual assets companies.
According to Olushola, the recent signing of the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is expected to address regulatory overlaps that have created compliance difficulties for businesses operating in the sector.
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“What the President has done is to ensure that the virtual asset sector is stable. It’s obvious that we have different agencies with laws guiding crypto in the country, and it’s tedious to comply and inimical to business growth,” he said.
He said the Executive Order establishes a centralised governance structure for coordinating regulation of cryptocurrencies and digital assets, including the creation of a Virtual Asset Council chaired by the CBN.
The NRS official said the Federal Government is aware of the significant volume of capital flowing through the virtual asset ecosystem and the relatively low tax revenue currently generated from the sector.
He said the government’s objective is to create a framework that allows digital asset businesses to grow while improving tax compliance and revenue generation.
“We are committed to creating a system where digital assets will thrive and Nigeria will be a hub and model for virtual assets in Africa,” Olushola said.
“With the new order signed into law by President Tinubu, we will come up with a new virtual asset policy that is more friendly and improves the growth of the sector,” he added.
He also urged startups and emerging operators to begin complying with tax obligations early rather than waiting until they become established businesses.
Nathaniel Luz, President of the Africa Stablecoin Network and Convener of the summit, urged the NRS and other regulatory bodies to adopt a fair and humane approach to regulation and taxation.
“For years, the industry operated under a cloud of regulatory ambiguity that stifled institutional participation. New laws and guidelines established should be transparent and fair to all,” Luz said.
He said the growing alignment among the NRS, CBN, SEC and the Presidency indicates that the government increasingly recognises digital assets, particularly stablecoins, as potential infrastructure for trade, remittances and financial inclusion.
“Last year, we opened the door; this year, we are walking through it. The institutions gathered here are no longer here to speculate; they are here to build the payment rails that will power African trade for the next decade,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tosin N. Luz, Chief Executive Officer of Nexply Compliance, cautioned virtual asset operators to ensure that business expansion is matched by compliance with data privacy and consumer protection requirements.
Also, the US Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Saturday moved to advance a major bill that would create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies which, if passed, would mark a huge victory for U.S. President Donald Trump and the crypto industry.
Thune, a Republican, early Saturday morning filed to set up a key procedural vote on the Clarity Act when the Senate returns from its August recess in mid-September, potentially paving the way for a full floor vote on the bill, according to the U.S. Senate Press Gallery website.
The move suggests Senate Republican leaders believe they may yet be able to wrangle the 60 votes needed for the bill to pass, despite continued opposition by many Democrats.
Currently, the bill needs the support of at least eight Democrats and all of the Senate’s voting Republicans for it to pass.
The legislation would give the crypto industry its first comprehensive federal rulebook, defining when digital tokens are securities or commodities and which regulators oversee them. Crypto companies say the act is necessary to provide legal clarity for the industry and could potentially boost the adoption of cryptocurrencies.
The passage of the Clarity Act would also hand Trump a second major crypto policy win after he signed a bill supporting dollar-backed tokens known as stablecoins into law last year, even as Democrats say his family’s own crypto profits create a conflict of interest.
The crypto industry spent more than $119 million backing pro-crypto candidates in the 2024 election hoping to advance the Clarity Act and stablecoin law.
Passage of the bill would be a blow for banks, which have fought to limit language that would allow crypto companies to effectively compete for bank deposits by offering rewards on customer stablecoin holdings.
Trump, who courted crypto cash on the campaign trail and whose family has profited from its own token, has prioritized crypto reform during his second administration and the White House has also been pushing hard for the bill, Reuters reported.
Trump in June reported more than $1.4 billion in income from his family’s crypto ventures last year.
Democrats want more restrictions on government officials’ crypto ventures, and negotiations on that aspect of the bill remain fluid.