Nigeria

Nigeria has one of the most complicated relationships with Bitcoin of any country in the world.

For years, Nigeria ranked among the top countries globally for Bitcoin adoption by volume. Young Nigerians used it to receive freelance payments from international clients, to store savings outside a naira that was losing value rapidly, and to move money across borders without the friction of the traditional banking system.

In February 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria ordered all banks to close accounts associated with cryptocurrency transactions and prohibited financial institutions from facilitating crypto trading. It was one of the most aggressive anti-Bitcoin moves any major economy had taken.

The result: peer-to-peer Bitcoin trading in Nigeria exploded. Users shifted from exchanges to direct trades, to LocalBitcoins, to Telegram groups. The volume didn’t fall — it went underground and then resurged as new platforms emerged.

By 2023, facing continued currency pressure and a black market dollar premium, the Nigerian government began reversing course. The SEC started working on a regulatory framework for crypto assets. The blanket ban was quietly walked back.

Nigeria’s experience is one of the clearest demonstrations of what Bitcoin’s decentralisation actually means in practice. A government with significant institutional power tried to stop its citizens from using Bitcoin. The citizens kept using it. The government eventually had to adapt rather than succeed.

When adoption is driven by genuine need — protecting savings, receiving payments, accessing dollar exposure — no ban has proven sufficient to stop it.

Tomorrow: Argentina — saving in Bitcoin when your currency loses half its value every year.

— The Daily Bit