The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has imposed monetary sanctions of N814.3 million (nearly $2 million) on four commercial banks in the country for permitting cryptocurrency transactions, Bloomberg reports.
The sanctions come over a year after the apex monetary authority placed an implicit ban on cryptocurrencies in Africa’s largest democracy by ordering all commercial banks in the country to shut down all cryptocurrency-related accounts.
CBN is said to have spotted the transactions through its ultramodern surveillance technology currently exclusive to it.
The fined lenders are Stanbic IBTC Bank, the banking division of the Stanbic IBTC Holdings; Access Bank PLC, which is owned by the Access Bank Group; the United Bank for Africa (UBA) PLC, a Nigerian pan-African financial services group; and Fidelity Bank PLC.
While Access Bank got the biggest monetary sanction of N500 million ($1.2 million), Fidelity Bank got the smallest at N14.3 million ($34, 363).
However, UBA got slammed with N100 million ($240, 298) while Stanbic IBTC Bank incurred N200 million ($480,596). The fines in total stand at $1,956,746 million at the country’s official exchange
Exchange
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading.
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading.
Read this Term rate of N416.15 naira to a dollar as of Wednesday.
The Chief Executive Officer of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Wole Adeniyi, had disclosed the fining of the local banking division during an investor conference call held on Tuesday in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, the outlet reported.
More on the Fines
According to Adeniyi, the monetary sanction imposed on Stanbic IBTC Bank was for two accounts alleged to have been used for cryptocurrency transactions.
Nigerian local media, Premium Times, reported that Adeniyi explained that although the domestic bank has been following the apex bank’s directives on cryptocurrency, the two deals were processed through its system without the lender noticing.
In contrast, Access Bank, Nigeria’s largest commercial bank by asset, was penalized for its failure to close customers’ crypto accounts.
Additionally, while UBA was sanctioned for approving the digital currency transactions of one of its customers, Fidelity Bank incurred the regulator’s wrath for a similar offence.
Nigeria: Africa’s Crypto Reflection?
Nigeria is one of the top countries in terms of crypto demand in Africa and globally. There are concerns as to what Nigeria’s strict regulations on digital assets could portend for the continent.
According to the Brookings Institution, Africa is the fastest-growing cryptocurrency market among developing economies and the third-largest growing market in the world.
Chainalysis’ 2021 Global Crypto Adoption Index ranks Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa among the top 10 countries in the world in terms of cryptocurrency use.
However, not all countries in the continent are open to cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies
By using cryptography, virtual currencies, known as cryptocurrencies, are nearly counterfeit-proof digital currencies that are built on blockchain technology. Comprised of decentralized networks, blockchain technology is not overseen by a central authority.Therefore, cryptocurrencies function in a decentralized nature which theoretically makes them immune to government interference. The term, cryptocurrency derives from the origin of the encryption techniques that are employed to secure the networks which are used to authenticate blockchain technology. Cryptocurrencies can be thought of as systems that accept online payments which are denoted as “tokens.” Tokens are represented as internal ledger entries in blockchain technology while the term crypto is used to depict cryptographic methods and encryption algorithms such as public-private key pairs, various hashing functions, and an elliptical curve. Every cryptocurrency transaction that occurs is logged in a web-based ledger with blockchain technology.These then must be approved by a disparate network of individual nodes (computers that maintain a copy of the ledger). For every new block generated, the block must first be authenticated and confirmed ‘approved’ by each node, which makes forging the transactional history of cryptocurrencies nearly impossible. The World’s First CryptoBitcoin became the first blockchain-based cryptocurrency and to this day is still the most demanded cryptocurrency and the most valued. Bitcoin still contributes the majority of the overall cryptocurrency market volume, though several other cryptos have grown in popularity in recent years.Indeed, out of the wake of Bitcoin, iterations of Bitcoin became prevalent which resulted in a multitude of newly created or cloned cryptocurrencies. Contending cryptocurrencies that emerged after Bitcoin’s success is referred to as ‘altcoins’ and they refer to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Peercoin, Namecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Stellar, and Dash. Cryptocurrencies promise a wide range of technological innovations that have yet to be structured into being. Simplified payments between two parties without the need for a middle man is one aspect while leveraging blockchain technology to minimize transaction and processing fees for banks is another. Of course, cryptocurrencies have their disadvantages too. This includes issues of tax evasion, money laundering, and other illicit online activities where anonymity is a dire ingredient in solicitous and fraudulent activities.
By using cryptography, virtual currencies, known as cryptocurrencies, are nearly counterfeit-proof digital currencies that are built on blockchain technology. Comprised of decentralized networks, blockchain technology is not overseen by a central authority.Therefore, cryptocurrencies function in a decentralized nature which theoretically makes them immune to government interference. The term, cryptocurrency derives from the origin of the encryption techniques that are employed to secure the networks which are used to authenticate blockchain technology. Cryptocurrencies can be thought of as systems that accept online payments which are denoted as “tokens.” Tokens are represented as internal ledger entries in blockchain technology while the term crypto is used to depict cryptographic methods and encryption algorithms such as public-private key pairs, various hashing functions, and an elliptical curve. Every cryptocurrency transaction that occurs is logged in a web-based ledger with blockchain technology.These then must be approved by a disparate network of individual nodes (computers that maintain a copy of the ledger). For every new block generated, the block must first be authenticated and confirmed ‘approved’ by each node, which makes forging the transactional history of cryptocurrencies nearly impossible. The World’s First CryptoBitcoin became the first blockchain-based cryptocurrency and to this day is still the most demanded cryptocurrency and the most valued. Bitcoin still contributes the majority of the overall cryptocurrency market volume, though several other cryptos have grown in popularity in recent years.Indeed, out of the wake of Bitcoin, iterations of Bitcoin became prevalent which resulted in a multitude of newly created or cloned cryptocurrencies. Contending cryptocurrencies that emerged after Bitcoin’s success is referred to as ‘altcoins’ and they refer to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Peercoin, Namecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Stellar, and Dash. Cryptocurrencies promise a wide range of technological innovations that have yet to be structured into being. Simplified payments between two parties without the need for a middle man is one aspect while leveraging blockchain technology to minimize transaction and processing fees for banks is another. Of course, cryptocurrencies have their disadvantages too. This includes issues of tax evasion, money laundering, and other illicit online activities where anonymity is a dire ingredient in solicitous and fraudulent activities.
Read this Term. According to a report by the United States’ Library of Congress (LoC), of the 51 countries that have implemented a ban on cryptocurrencies, 23 are African countries.
While four African countries, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia, placed an absolute ban on cryptocurrency, 19 countries have placed implicit restrictions on digital currencies.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has imposed monetary sanctions of N814.3 million (nearly $2 million) on four commercial banks in the country for permitting cryptocurrency transactions, Bloomberg reports.
The sanctions come over a year after the apex monetary authority placed an implicit ban on cryptocurrencies in Africa’s largest democracy by ordering all commercial banks in the country to shut down all cryptocurrency-related accounts.
CBN is said to have spotted the transactions through its ultramodern surveillance technology currently exclusive to it.
The fined lenders are Stanbic IBTC Bank, the banking division of the Stanbic IBTC Holdings; Access Bank PLC, which is owned by the Access Bank Group; the United Bank for Africa (UBA) PLC, a Nigerian pan-African financial services group; and Fidelity Bank PLC.
While Access Bank got the biggest monetary sanction of N500 million ($1.2 million), Fidelity Bank got the smallest at N14.3 million ($34, 363).
However, UBA got slammed with N100 million ($240, 298) while Stanbic IBTC Bank incurred N200 million ($480,596). The fines in total stand at $1,956,746 million at the country’s official exchange
Exchange
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading.
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading.
Read this Term rate of N416.15 naira to a dollar as of Wednesday.
The Chief Executive Officer of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Wole Adeniyi, had disclosed the fining of the local banking division during an investor conference call held on Tuesday in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, the outlet reported.
More on the Fines
According to Adeniyi, the monetary sanction imposed on Stanbic IBTC Bank was for two accounts alleged to have been used for cryptocurrency transactions.
Nigerian local media, Premium Times, reported that Adeniyi explained that although the domestic bank has been following the apex bank’s directives on cryptocurrency, the two deals were processed through its system without the lender noticing.
In contrast, Access Bank, Nigeria’s largest commercial bank by asset, was penalized for its failure to close customers’ crypto accounts.
Additionally, while UBA was sanctioned for approving the digital currency transactions of one of its customers, Fidelity Bank incurred the regulator’s wrath for a similar offence.
Nigeria: Africa’s Crypto Reflection?
Nigeria is one of the top countries in terms of crypto demand in Africa and globally. There are concerns as to what Nigeria’s strict regulations on digital assets could portend for the continent.
According to the Brookings Institution, Africa is the fastest-growing cryptocurrency market among developing economies and the third-largest growing market in the world.
Chainalysis’ 2021 Global Crypto Adoption Index ranks Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa among the top 10 countries in the world in terms of cryptocurrency use.
However, not all countries in the continent are open to cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies
By using cryptography, virtual currencies, known as cryptocurrencies, are nearly counterfeit-proof digital currencies that are built on blockchain technology. Comprised of decentralized networks, blockchain technology is not overseen by a central authority.Therefore, cryptocurrencies function in a decentralized nature which theoretically makes them immune to government interference. The term, cryptocurrency derives from the origin of the encryption techniques that are employed to secure the networks which are used to authenticate blockchain technology. Cryptocurrencies can be thought of as systems that accept online payments which are denoted as “tokens.” Tokens are represented as internal ledger entries in blockchain technology while the term crypto is used to depict cryptographic methods and encryption algorithms such as public-private key pairs, various hashing functions, and an elliptical curve. Every cryptocurrency transaction that occurs is logged in a web-based ledger with blockchain technology.These then must be approved by a disparate network of individual nodes (computers that maintain a copy of the ledger). For every new block generated, the block must first be authenticated and confirmed ‘approved’ by each node, which makes forging the transactional history of cryptocurrencies nearly impossible. The World’s First CryptoBitcoin became the first blockchain-based cryptocurrency and to this day is still the most demanded cryptocurrency and the most valued. Bitcoin still contributes the majority of the overall cryptocurrency market volume, though several other cryptos have grown in popularity in recent years.Indeed, out of the wake of Bitcoin, iterations of Bitcoin became prevalent which resulted in a multitude of newly created or cloned cryptocurrencies. Contending cryptocurrencies that emerged after Bitcoin’s success is referred to as ‘altcoins’ and they refer to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Peercoin, Namecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Stellar, and Dash. Cryptocurrencies promise a wide range of technological innovations that have yet to be structured into being. Simplified payments between two parties without the need for a middle man is one aspect while leveraging blockchain technology to minimize transaction and processing fees for banks is another. Of course, cryptocurrencies have their disadvantages too. This includes issues of tax evasion, money laundering, and other illicit online activities where anonymity is a dire ingredient in solicitous and fraudulent activities.
By using cryptography, virtual currencies, known as cryptocurrencies, are nearly counterfeit-proof digital currencies that are built on blockchain technology. Comprised of decentralized networks, blockchain technology is not overseen by a central authority.Therefore, cryptocurrencies function in a decentralized nature which theoretically makes them immune to government interference. The term, cryptocurrency derives from the origin of the encryption techniques that are employed to secure the networks which are used to authenticate blockchain technology. Cryptocurrencies can be thought of as systems that accept online payments which are denoted as “tokens.” Tokens are represented as internal ledger entries in blockchain technology while the term crypto is used to depict cryptographic methods and encryption algorithms such as public-private key pairs, various hashing functions, and an elliptical curve. Every cryptocurrency transaction that occurs is logged in a web-based ledger with blockchain technology.These then must be approved by a disparate network of individual nodes (computers that maintain a copy of the ledger). For every new block generated, the block must first be authenticated and confirmed ‘approved’ by each node, which makes forging the transactional history of cryptocurrencies nearly impossible. The World’s First CryptoBitcoin became the first blockchain-based cryptocurrency and to this day is still the most demanded cryptocurrency and the most valued. Bitcoin still contributes the majority of the overall cryptocurrency market volume, though several other cryptos have grown in popularity in recent years.Indeed, out of the wake of Bitcoin, iterations of Bitcoin became prevalent which resulted in a multitude of newly created or cloned cryptocurrencies. Contending cryptocurrencies that emerged after Bitcoin’s success is referred to as ‘altcoins’ and they refer to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Peercoin, Namecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Stellar, and Dash. Cryptocurrencies promise a wide range of technological innovations that have yet to be structured into being. Simplified payments between two parties without the need for a middle man is one aspect while leveraging blockchain technology to minimize transaction and processing fees for banks is another. Of course, cryptocurrencies have their disadvantages too. This includes issues of tax evasion, money laundering, and other illicit online activities where anonymity is a dire ingredient in solicitous and fraudulent activities.
Read this Term. According to a report by the United States’ Library of Congress (LoC), of the 51 countries that have implemented a ban on cryptocurrencies, 23 are African countries.
While four African countries, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia, placed an absolute ban on cryptocurrency, 19 countries have placed implicit restrictions on digital currencies.
Source: https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/nigerias-cbn-slams-2m-fines-on-four-banks-for-crypto-transactions/