Abuja, July 18, 2026 -President Bola Tinubu has signed the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination 2026.
The executive order, which was signed in Abuja on Friday, is in pursuant to Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution (Amended) and provides for a coordinated regulatory framework for virtual assets in Nigeria,
Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, disclosed this in a statement on Friday.
The statement said the Executive Order is to harmonise the regulation of virtual assets, strengthen collaboration among financial regulators, protect Nigerians from fraud and encourage responsible innovation.
It said the weak coordination among regulatory agencies had left the country vulnerable to money laundering, terrorism financing, cybercrime, fraud and revenue leakages.
“Too often, unregistered and fraudulent operators have exploited these gaps to prey on unsuspecting Nigerians, costing families their savings,” it said It
The Executive Order also creates a Virtual Asset Council to be chaired by the CBN, while the NRS and SEC will serve as vice-chairs.
Other members of the council are the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA)
The council is to provide policy direction, strengthen cooperation among participating agencies and work with the Attorney-General of the Federation to develop a harmonised legal and institutional framework for regulating virtual assets.
The order also creates a Virtual Asset Office to be domiciled at the CBN to coordinate information sharing applications and reporting among relevant agencies.
The statement, however, said the new framework does not create another regulator or diminish the statutory responsibilities of existing institutions.
“Significantly, the Order does not create a new regulator or transfer powers between agencies. Each institution retains its full statutory mandate and independence, and the framework coordinates their work rather than replacing it,” the statement added.
Under the new arrangement, the SEC will continue to regulate virtual assets classified as securities, while the CBN will supervise payment, settlement, custody and other services involving non-security virtual assets. Where regulatory jurisdiction is unclear, the Virtual Asset Council will determine the appropriate supervising agency.
The CBN is also to establish a regulatory sandbox for the virtual assets industry that will enable qualified operators to test virtual asset products, blockchain-based services and other innovations under regulatory supervision before they are introduced to the wider market.
The sandbox will also help ensure that innovations that reach Nigerians have been properly examined and supervised.
The statement said further details of the sandbox are expected to be announced by the apex bank.
It said the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) will introduce a tax policy specifically for the virtual assets sector to clarify how existing tax laws apply and improve voluntary compliance.
The statement said the federal government is finalising a Virtual Assets White Paper that will outline Nigeria’s long-term policy direction for the industry.
It said the Virtual Asset Council had been directed to develop a harmonised implementation framework within 30 days to facilitate the execution of the Presidential Order.
