Digital Asset Markets Takes Off in Nigeria

Sunday Ehigiator

The Founder and Chairman of the Global Investment Advisory Community, Dr. Nicholas Okoye, recently hosted a landmark Digital Asset Markets Strategy Masterclass, providing industry stakeholders with a comprehensive outlook of ‘The Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2025’ recently signed into law, the Nigeria’s digital asset market prospects and future direction, effectively marking the launch of Digital Asset Markets in Nigeria.

The masterclass was hosted by the capital market’s apex regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission, in association with the Global Investment Advisory community, a community of institutional financial investors, investment banks, asset management firms, and high-net-worth sophisticated accredited investors.

In his keynote address, Dr Okoye placed key emphasis on the fact that the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had recently signed the new Investment and Securities Act 2025, which provided for the final authorisation and defined the regulatory framework within which the digital asset markets will operate in Nigeria.

According to him, “The ISA Act 2025 authorises cryptocurrencies in Nigeria, as well as provides a strong legal basis for the issuance of tokens, which are the key digital assets that will be traded and exchanged between investors within our own digital asset markets ecosystem in Nigeria.”

The strategy session held at the Nigerian Security Exchange Commission (SEC), Lagos auditorium, was attended by an overflowing audience of financial, banking and capital market institutions, technology and finance professionals, as well as many investors and members of the general public.

Also speaking, the Director General of the Nigeria-China Strategic Partnership, Joseph Tegbe, guided the audience on the monumental investments being made by China across the World, and gave strategic insights into how Nigeria’s new digital asset markets can access institutional investment from China.

Similarly, the Director General of SEC, Dr Timi Agama, who was represented by Executive Commissioner operations, Bola Ajomale, provided the audience with assurances that SEC was ready for the digital asset markets and that the regulatory body has already put in place structures for accommodating a vibrant and transparent digital asset markets in Nigeria, that would stimulate local and international investor confidence.

A major highlight of the event included a commitment from the Chairman of the Nigerian Senate’s Committee on Capital Markets, Senator Osita Izunaso, who pledged that his Senate capital markets committee would continue to work with the Global Investment Advisory community and Dr Nick Okoye, to identify new areas of legislative adjustment or amendments that will further deepen the digital asset markets and the capital markets as a whole in Nigeria.

On his part, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the Hon. Commissioner of Finance for Lagos State, Mr. Yomi Oluyomi, reiterated that Lagos State was ready for the digital asset markets.

He reminded the institutional investment and financial community present that Lagos was the first state to issue State Government-backed bonds, back when the Nigerian capital markets had just introduced structured bonds as a route for long-term State Government funding.

Speaking on the introduction of digital assets to the Nigeria Security Market, Dr. Okoye noted that “the Digital Asset Markets in Nigeria and our ability to position for its full adoption across Africa, will redefine Nigeria and subsequently Africa’s wealth and economic future.

“We expect that these digital asset markets will provide, for the first time in Nigeria and Africa’s history, a rare and unique opportunity for a true measure and a true reflection of Nigeria’s and subsequently Africa’s entire wealth position.

“We are committed to ensuring that our African people will be the owners and operators of this new digital asset markets ecosystem, as our digital assets will be listed as well as traded on the blockchain and they will be tied to underlying physical assets, which will reduce the volatility that is witnessed and prevalent in most other digital markets across the World, this is very powerful and nothing short of revolutionary.”

The event ended on a positive upbeat, with the Global Investment Advisory community committing to take a selection of its members on an international digital asset markets roadshow to study cryptocurrency and digital asset exchanges across the World.

In addition, the operator of the community, Anabel Capital, in association with the African Enterprise Institute, unveiled some special executive programs in Digital Asset Markets Strategy, that are designed for financial and capital market operators, to better prepare their executive teams for the new digital asset marketplace.

According to Anabel Capital, “These strategic digital asset markets strategy executive programs come with guides, a roadmap and innovative elements of the digital asset markets that guarantee monumental profits for any digital asset operator that is implementing this pathway.

“Some of the opportunities that come with certifications include but are not limited to Digital Asset Markets Professional Services firms’ program, which includes a pathway for all the new professional services that this digital asset markets introduction will require, digital asset markets desks for conglomerates and subnational authorities to engage with the digital asset markets as either asset owners or as asset investors, and then they have the tokenisation as a path to wealth creation and wealth management, which is best suited for institutional investors, asset owners, institutional asset managers and for sophisticated accredited investors.”