Binance, a major global cryptocurrency exchange, has announced its decision to exit the Nigerian market. The exchange will discontinue all services in the Nigerian naira (NGN), the local fiat currency. Starting March 8, Binance will suspend NGN withdrawals, and any remaining NGN balances in users’ accounts will be automatically converted to the Tether (USDT) stablecoin. The exchange has advised users to withdraw their NGN, trade their NGN assets, or convert NGN into crypto before the discontinuation of NGN services.
NGN deposits will also be immediately suspended, and all trading pairs involving NGN will be removed from Binance on March 7. Binance Pay, the exchange’s payment service, will remove NGN from the list of supported payment options on March 6. Furthermore, Binance’s peer-to-peer platform had already delisted all NGN trading pairs in late February.
This decision by Binance to completely remove the Nigerian naira from its platform comes as the company faces regulatory scrutiny in Nigeria. The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria has raised concerns about crypto exchanges in the country potentially handling illicit transactions, including “suspicious flows” of funds at Binance. Additionally, Nigeria’s National Security Adviser has reportedly confiscated the passports of two Binance executives, who are citizens of the United States and the United Kingdom, in Abuja, the capital.
Amidst these allegations, the Nigerian House of Representatives Committee on Financial Crimes has summoned Binance CEO Richard Teng to appear before the committee. The committee’s chair issued an ultimatum for Binance management to appear on or before March 4.
Nigeria has been experiencing rapid growth in its crypto economy in recent years. In 2023, Nigeria was ranked second in the world for cryptocurrency adoption by Chainalysis, a major crypto intelligence firm. The country also emerged as the most crypto-obsessed nation in terms of Google searches for “cryptocurrency” or “buy crypto” in August 2022.
However, regulators in Nigeria seem less welcoming of the country’s high pace of crypto adoption. An adviser to Nigeria’s president called for a ban on Binance, KuCoin, and other crypto trading platforms in February 2024. Two years ago, Nigeria’s central bank banned regulated financial institutions from providing services to crypto exchanges in the country.