File image of President Tinubu.
President Bola Tinubu has signed a new executive order establishing a coordinated regulatory framework for virtual assets in Nigeria, with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) taking the lead in overseeing the sector.
The Presidency announced on Friday that the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, takes immediate effect.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the government said the directive is aimed at harmonising the regulation of virtual assets, strengthening collaboration among financial regulators, protecting Nigerians from fraud and encouraging responsible innovation.
According to the statement, the executive order became necessary because the rapid evolution of virtual assets has blurred “the traditional boundaries between currencies, money, commodities and securities”, creating regulatory overlaps and gaps.
