CBN Stops Cash Withdrawals and Cheques For Crypto Bank Accounts

After weeks of lifting restrictions on banks operating accounts for virtual assets such as cryptocurrencies, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said there will be no cash withdrawals on accounts linked to virtual assets.

According to the guidelines published by Apex Bank, the issuance of third-party cheques by accounts linked to virtual assets would also not be allowed, as only transfers into other assigned accounts would be allowed.

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THE STATEMENT

• Transactions on virtual asset bank accounts would also be through managers’ cheques. This is aside from the settlement of virtual and digital asset transactions. The guideline also stipulated that banks are to open special accounts following the guideline, which shall be solely for transactions on virtual and digital assets “and not for any other purpose.

• Aside from providing designated settlement accounts and settlement services, the accounts also serve as channels for foreign exchange flows and trade. This is a copy of the certificate of capital importation, part of the documents required to open the accounts.

• Banks and financial institutions shall continuously monitor all activities conducted in designated accounts opened following these guidelines. Financial institutions shall, at the end of every month, by the 10th of the following month, submit the CBN data and other information on designated accounts to the relevant supervisory department.

However, banks and financial institutions must submit monthly the number of accounts opened, the value and volume of transactions on each account, details of the counterparties to the transactions, incidence of fraud or theft, and the number of customer complaints and remedial measures taken.

The guidelines also state that financial institutions establish transaction limits for each designated account in line with the maximum transaction charges the bank has provided; it is a guide to charges, even as it directs that they are not to enter into any concession agreement or arrangement with the holder of a designated account.

According to the guidelines, virtual asset service providers, digital asset custodians, digital asset offering platforms, digital asset exchanges, and operators in the virtual and digital asset space licensed by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) are eligible to open and operate accounts with financial institutions in the country.