Rwanda becomes the latest African country to restrict banks from processing crypto transactions
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Loading... - Morowa Sowah
- 17 Feb 2023
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The National Bank of Rwanda has directed all the nations’ banks to desist from “any crypto-related activities until a regulatory framework has been put in place. Rwanda joins Zimbabwe and Nigeria on the list of African countries to ban banks from processing crypto transactions.
Soraya Hakuziyaremye, the acting governor of the NBR, justified the organization’s move in a letter addressed to managing directors and CEOs of financial services providers on January 31st.
She explained the unregulated status of most crypto assets leaves users without the “guarantees and safeguards associated with regulated financial services.” The NRB’s letter cites how crypto investors elsewhere have been duped by scammers like Ruju Ignatova of Onecoin and Gerald Cotten of Quadriga crypto exchange.
The IMF reported in November that only one-quarter of countries in sub-Saharan Africa formally regulate crypto. Two-thirds have implemented some restrictions, and six countries—Cameroon, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and the Republic of Congo—have banned crypto.
Zimbabwe has ordered all banks to stop processing transactions, and Liberia directed a local crypto startup to cease operations (implicit bans).
Many African countries have banned crypto-related transactions in the past. According to BusinessCompiler, as of the end of 2021, 23 African countries have placed bans on the use and trade of cryptocurrencies within their economies. It revealed that four African countries placed an absolute ban on cryptocurrency, while 19 other countries placed implicit restrictions on digital assets. Read More…
