Local’s access to global crypto platforms could end under Nigeria’s proposed capital floor

Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed rules that would bring crypto businesses into its licensing perimeter when they operate in Nigeria, serve Nigerian residents, or target the country’s investors and market through digital channels. The plan would raise the cost of serving Nigerian users by combining local-presence requirements with capital, custody, and stablecoin-reserve tests.The regulator published the proposal on Aug. 20 and opened comments for two weeks, putting the calendar deadline on Sept. 3. The SEC page does not state a cutoff time or time zone. The measures remain proposals under consultation, not rules already in force.The scope clause is broad enough to reach offshore exchanges and other platforms based on whom they serve, rather than only where the business is incorporated. It covers anyone operating in Nigeria, providing services to Nigerian residents, or targeting Nigerian investors or the Nigerian market directly, indirectly, or through digital channels.A digital-asset business operating in Nigeria or targeting residents would need SEC registration, approval, or authorization under the proposed rule text. Applicants generally would have to in...