Not every interaction with a virtual asset is a taxable event. Moving a token between two wallets you control, locking it into a staking protocol, or wrapping it into a different technical form are all things a typical holder does routinely, and the Guidelines are careful to distinguish these mechanical or custodial steps from a genuine disposal that actually crystallizes a tax liability. Once that line is drawn, the Guidelines then set out, in unusually granular detail, exactly how a taxable gain is to be calculated and collected — a methodology built specifically to address the distorting effect of naira depreciation on gains measured in a volatile local currency. This article addresses both in turn.
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Policy & Regulations
August 17, 2026
Understanding Nigeria’s New Virtual Asset Tax Framework: When Tax Applies, and How the Numbers Are Calculated
Regulatory Compliance
August 4, 2026
Understanding the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) Guidelines on the Taxation of Virtual Assets: What Counts as Virtual Assets, What is Taxed, and What Type of Tax
This first article in our three-part series on the Guidelines addresses the threshold question every VASP needs answered before anything else applies: what, precisely, counts as a taxable virtual asset, and which taxes attach to it. Subsequent articles will address taxable and non-taxable events, the calculation and collection mechanics, and the compliance burden the Guidelines impose.
Regulatory Compliance
June 25, 2026
The End of Feature-Based AML Compliance: CBN’s New Baseline Standards for Financial Institutions, Fintechs, and VASPs in Nigeria
Does your organization procure compliance software merely to satisfy a check-box requirement, yet remain unable to demonstrate that the technology actually detects and prevents financial crime? There is a new framework by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which directly challenges this approach. The days of feature-based compliance and vendor-driven implementation are over. The CBN now demands demonstrable effectiveness for all financial institutions in Nigeria. Accordingly, the new framework shifts regulatory focus from paper-based compliance to real-time scrutiny. The CBN will no longer just audit written compliance policies; it will actively scrutinize the logic, process, capability, and security of the compliance technology itself.
Regulatory Compliance
October 6, 2025
An Overview of the Quadruplet Tax Laws in Nigeria
In a landmark legislative overhaul in June 2025, Nigeria reformed its tax landscape. The reform built upon four interconnected laws, each with a distinct purpose: one that defines what is taxed; one that outlines how taxes are administered; one that establishes a new federal tax authority; and one that creates bodies for coordination and dispute resolution.
Industries & Growth
Regulatory Compliance
June 10, 2025
MultiChoice’s Right to Fix Prices for Its Services: A Landmark Decision and Win for Nigeria’s Free-market Economy
Every few months, Nigerians brace for price hikes from essential service providers. For many, it sparks frustration, with cries for regulatory intervention. But the recent Federal High Court judgment delivered by Honorable Justice James Omotosho does more than address a subscription fee. The judgment draws a defining line in Nigeria’s economic landscape: one that affirms the principles of a liberal market economy.
Industry Insight
Regulatory Compliance
Startups
Tech Entrepreneurs
June 4, 2021
Crowdfunding portals and digital commodities investment platforms in Nigeria: Before crowdfunding is crowded out
by Senator Ihenyen, Lead Partner Download the PDF version here. Introduction Crowdfunding today is no longer charity. It is serious business. And the ever-growing digital economy has been a big part of this. New business models as well as.. Read more
Data Protection and Privacy
May 6, 2021
A Precaution to Businesses that Control Personal Data: NITDA’s N5million fine against Electronic Settlement Limited as a Case in Point
by Gabriel Eze, Associate The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is a data protection authority in Nigeria. It issued the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation 2019 (the ‘NDPR’). The NDPR requires data controllers that process personal data that meet certain.. Read more
Blockchain Technology
Industry Insight
Regulatory Compliance
Technology Law
August 6, 2020
Deal or no deal, cryptocurrency transactions remain legal in Nigeria and environs.
In the inaugural edition of Blockchain Street, we considered whether blockchain technology—a decentralized ledger technology which has been described as a ‘trustless technology’—can really solve the problem of trust in a centralized world. In the month of July, we consider the.. Read more
IP & IT Advocacy
Technology Law
July 26, 2017
The Whistle Blowers Protection Bill: Thumbs Down on Data Protection & Privacy
The Nigeria Senate recently passed the Whistle Blowers Protection Bill. The Bill was passed to help ensure the safety of citizens who blow the whistle against public officers and public bodies that indulge in improper conducts. This is a welcome development. But what’s not welcomed about.. Read more