Nigeria’s ₦2 Billion Rule for Crypto Exchanges and Custodians: Can Smaller Firms Keep Up?
Can smaller crypto operators meet Nigeria’s SEC capital requirements and remain competitive, or will the cost of compliance favour businesses with deeper financial backing?
Starting a cryptocurrency business in Nigeria takes more than building a platform and attracting customers.
The company also needs enough capital to meet regulatory requirements and for digital-asset exchanges and custodians, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has set that minimum at ₦2 billion.
The requirements were published in January 2026, with affected businesses given until 30 June 2027 to comply.
They returned to focus on 7 October, when the SEC held its second biannual Regulator/FinTech Clinic to discuss registration, capital and compliance with fintech and digital-asset operators.
At the meeting, SEC Executive Commissioner for Operations Bola Ajomale identified insufficient capital, unclear business proposals, weak risk governance and inadequate compliance plans among the problems affecting some registration applications.
For a smaller company still building its customer base, raising billions of naira could be a major hurdle.
How much capital does the SEC require?
The amount depends on the service a business provides. The SEC’srevised minimum capital requirements set these thresholds for digital-asset businesses:
Digital-asset exchanges: ₦2 billion
Digital-asset custodians: ₦2 billion
Digital-asset offering platforms: ₦1 billion
Real-world asset tokenisation and offering platforms: ₦1 billion
Digital-asset intermediaries: ₦500 million
Digital-asset platform operators, including token issuers: ₦500 million
Ancillary virtual-asset service providers: ₦300 million
These are minimum capital requirements, not fees paid to the SEC. The money is intended to give regulated businesses a stronger financial base, with the amount required reflecting the type of service they provide.
That money is just a part of running the business as companies still need to pay staff, maintain their technology, protect customer accounts and meet compliance obligations. A firm may have enough money to launch a product and attract users but still fall short of the capital required to operate under its chosen regulatory category.
Businesses that fail to meet the rules may face sanctions, including suspension or withdrawal of registration. The SEC says it may consider transitional arrangements on a case-by-case basis following an application; firms should not assume they will automatically receive an extension.
What happens to smaller crypto businesses?
Companies with established investors may be able to raise the money they need. Smaller operators could find fundraising harder, particularly if they have yet to establish a large customer base or a proven business model.
The cost of compliance adds to the pressure.
Digital-assets lawyer Safi Ghauri told ITWeb Africa that licensing, audits and capital requirements could weigh heavily on early-stage businesses. He discussed the possibility of some operators leaving the market or combining with others, while investor Jeremy Savory also anticipated consolidation.
For a small operator, that could mean looking for investors, partnering with another company or changing the services it offers. Some may decide that the cost of continuing is too high.
These are potential outcomes, however; there is not yet enough evidence to conclude that the new capital requirements have already forced smaller Nigerian crypto businesses to close.
The SEC also has an Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP) for eligible digital-asset businesses progressing towards full registration under supervision.
In August 2026, it admitted Pisi Payments Solution Limited, BC Access (Nigeria) Limited, which operates as Blockchain.com, and Yellow Card Financial Limited. Their conditional Approval-in-Principle did not amount to full licences.
Who will still be able to compete?
The SEC wants digital-asset businesses to have the financial backing and safeguards needed to protect investors. Stronger oversight could help build confidence in the market, but meeting the requirements may be easier for firms with access to substantial funding than for young businesses trying to grow.
The rules do not set the same capital threshold for every digital-asset service, so the category under which a company operates matters, and for smaller firms, can they raise the required capital and cover the continuing cost of compliance, or will they need to change how they operate?
How businesses answer that question will help shape the range of regulated crypto services available to Nigerians.