(Bloomberg) -- Nigeria has ordered telecommunications companies and other internet service providers in the West African nation to block access to cryptocurrency trading platforms, a presidential spokesperson confirmed.
The directive affects websites, including those operated by Binance, Coinbase and Kraken, that are popular in Africa's most populous nation, where Nigerians use cryptocurrencies as a hedge against the frequent devaluation of the naira.
Local online newspaper Premium Times reported on Thursday that telecommunications providers were already implementing the order.
โPremium Times is right,โ presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said in a post on X, responding to the report.
In a statement to Bloomberg News, Binance confirmed that some users in Nigeria were experiencing issues accessing its website. โRest assured, Binance user funds are safe,โ a spokesperson for the crypto exchange said.
Onanuga has previously said that cryptocurrencies should be banned to stop the weakening of the local currency. The naira has lost 70% of its value since the central bank lifted its peg to the dollar in June in a bid to attract foreign exchange inflows. Those entries have not materialized.
โBinance, which is facing a regulatory standoff in many countries and causing disruptions in the forex market, should not be allowed to dictate the value of the naira, not on its cryptocurrency exchange platform,โ Onanuga said. โCryptocurrencies should be banned in our country or else this hemorrhaging of our currency will continue unabated.โ
Binance said the exchange remained "committed to complying with applicable local regulations and laws, with a dedicated focus on maintaining active engagement with all relevant stakeholders, regulators and policymakers."
In June, the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission said Binance was operating illegally in the country. It was a significant change of tone from the announcement in late 2022 that Nigerian authorities were discussing how to partner with the crypto exchange to establish a โdigital economic zoneโ that would focus on blockchain technology.
The developments in Nigeria come as regulators around the world continue to curb the exuberance of the cryptocurrency sector, following a price crash in 2022 that led to a series of bankruptcies, scandals and billions in losses for investors.
Some jurisdictions, including the European Union, have passed or are attempting to pass new laws to regulate this asset class.
In Asia, Singapore and Hong Kong have sought to provide more safeguards for investors and clarity on the rules surrounding digital assets through new targeted frameworks. An Indian government crackdown on offshore platforms has seen global crypto exchanges like Binance lose market share to local competitors.
Read: Binance loses Indian traders to local companies it recently dominated
--With the assistance of Ruth Olurounbi, Anna Irrera and Olga Kharif.
(Adds comments from Binance in fifth and eighth paragraphs and additional context throughout)
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