The Nigerian financial market regulator is interested in “tokens” backed by assets such as real estate, stocks and debt securities, while it is refractory to cryptocurrencies.

On Monday, May 1, 2023, the Bloomberg television channel quoted a regulator as saying that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the financial markets regulator in Nigeria, plans ^to allow the trading of asset-backed digital tokens on licensed platforms without lifting its cryptocurrency trading restrictions.

According to Abdulkadir Abbas, head of securities and investment services at the Commission, “the SEC is considering licensing platforms offering asset-backed digital tokens, including stocks, debt securities, and real estate, but not cryptocurrency exchanges.” The initiative aims to attract local investors who are addicted to digital currencies traded on the blockchain to local assets, especially stocks, which are increasingly shunned