President Bola Tinubu has signed the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, establishing a unified regulatory framework for Nigeria’s virtual assets ecosystem to strengthen oversight, protect investors, combat financial crimes and promote responsible innovation in the digital economy.
The Executive Order, signed pursuant to Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), takes immediate effect.
According to the Presidency, the new framework is designed to harmonise the activities of financial, revenue and capital market regulators in response to the rapid growth of the virtual assets sector, where digital assets increasingly cut across traditional classifications such as currencies, securities, commodities and payment systems.
In a statement issued on Friday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency said the initiative addresses long-standing regulatory fragmentation that has created overlapping responsibilities, enforcement gaps and institutional silos.
It noted that the absence of coordinated oversight had exposed the country to risks including money laundering, terrorism financing, cybercrime, data privacy breaches, fraud and revenue leakages.
The Executive Order is expected to improve collaboration among relevant regulatory agencies, enhance compliance with international standards and provide greater clarity for participants in Nigeria’s digital asset industry.
The Presidency said the coordinated framework would also encourage responsible innovation by creating a more predictable regulatory environment while safeguarding the integrity of Nigeria’s financial system and protecting investors in the rapidly expanding virtual assets market.
