The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a wider crypto regulatory framework, proposing new registration fees and capital requirements for all digital asset providers in the country.

Under the proposed Rules on Digital and Virtual Asset Operations, Custody and Markets, Digital Asset Exchanges (DAXs), Digital Asset Custodians (DACs), Digital Asset Platform Operators (DAPOs), Digital Asset Offering Platforms (DAOPs) and Real-World Asset Tokenization Platforms (RATOPs) would each pay a ₦30 million registration fee.

The proposed charges come alongside significantly higher capital requirements for operators, reflecting the SEC’s broader attempt to establish prudential and operational requirements for businesses participating in Nigeria’s digital asset ecosystem. Under the framework, DAXs and DACs would each require minimum capital of ₦2 billion, while DAPOs, DAOPs and RATOPs would require ₦500 million each. VASPs would have a minimum capital requirement of ₦200 million.

The SEC’s proposal is the latest in a series of government policies targeting the crypto market, starting from the Presidential Order on Virtual Assets and including the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) guidelines on virtual assets taxes recently released. The SEC also proposes that regulated entities maintain a fidelity insurance bond covering at least 25% of their minimum paid-up capital.

Beyond the registration charge, applicants would be required to pay a ₦100,000 processing fee and a ₦300,000 application fee. Entities seeking to operate under the SEC’s Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP) would also pay a ₦200,000 initial assessment fee and a ₦2 million ARIP application fee.

The framework also introduces ongoing supervisory charges linked to the turnover of regulated entities. A DAX operating under ARIP would pay a supervisory fee of 0.015% of adjusted turnover, while other entities under ARIP would pay 0.0075%. Following full registration, the supervisory fee would rise to 0.025% of adjusted turnover for DAXs and 0.015% for other regulated entities.

Under the new framework, the SEC states that any entity seeking registration must be incorporated in Nigeria (unless the SEC grants specific approval otherwise), maintain a registered office in the country, and have its Chief Executive Officer, Managing Director or equivalent principal officer resident in Nigeria.

“No person shall conduct any digital or virtual asset business, service, function or activity in Nigeria, or targeted at persons resident in Nigeria, unless registered, approved or authorized by the Commission in accordance with these Rules,” the Commission stated.

The SEC added that such an entity must comply with the Nigerian Code of Corporate Governance, the SEC’s corporate governance requirements and any other applicable governance standard.

According to the framework, a foreign stablecoin issuer seeking recognition to operate in Nigeria must appoint or maintain a local representative, demonstrate authorization in an acceptable foreign jurisdiction, and submit to Nigeria-specific reserve, liquidity and redemption-support conditions that the Commission may prescribe.

The framework also mandates registration under the Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP) for all companies seeking to operate in Nigeria’s crypto market.

“Except as otherwise approved by the Commission, an entity seeking registration under these Rules shall apply through the which shall serve as a pre-registration assessment and supervisory framework,” it stated.

The new framework builds on other recent policy moves targeted at regulating the crypto market. Just last month, President Bola Tinubu signed the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, establishing a new framework to coordinate the regulation of cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, tokenized assets, and other digital assets across government agencies.

Weeks after that, the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) also released new Guidelines on the Taxation of Virtual Assets, targeting companies, individual taxpayers, Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace operators, and other participants in Nigeria’s digital asset ecosystem.

Before that, the SEC intensified efforts to grant approval in principle to crypto exchanges under its ARIP. In the latest development under the SEC regulatory sandbox, the Commission cleared three additional VASPs for admission into its ARIP, bringing the total number of crypto firms under the regulatory sandbox to 14.

In a separate but related development targeting the crypto ecosystem, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently opened applications for the second cohort of its Regulatory Sandbox Programme, introducing dedicated tracks for virtual asset service providers and data-enabled financial services.

Applications for the second cohort opened on August 12, 2026, and are expected to close on August 31, 2026, according to a statement signed by Hakama Sidi Ali, Acting Director, Corporate Communications and Investor Relations Department at the CBN.

The VASP Track will support innovations involving virtual assets, stablecoins, payments, settlement, custody, wallets, and related financial infrastructure that require supervised live testing.