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Nigeria's Central Bank (CBN) has implemented new regulations mandating cryptocurrency peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms to tie each cryptocurrency transaction to a corresponding bank payment. This move aims to strengthen oversight of cryptocurrency trading outside traditional exchanges and increase visibility into transactions conducted through P2P platforms.

Operators must route naira payments through banking or CBN-approved channels, verify traders' identities, and maintain records connecting each payment to the corresponding cryptocurrency transfer. The rules part of the CBN's new framework for non-security virtual assets, which also require stablecoin issuers to implement controls for freezing wallets, destroying tokens, and blocking transactions.

The CBN insists that providers must not release or credit a regulated token in a P2P transaction unless they have verified the customer's identity and bank account details. The regulations underscore the CBN's efforts to tighten its control over cryptocurrency trading, giving the regulator greater insight into who is moving money through P2P platforms.

Stablecoin issuers must also build controls to freeze or block digital assets linked to suspicious activity. The new rules indicate a shift toward regulating P2P transactions through licensed platforms, with stricter measures to identify traders, trace payments, and monitor digital asset movements.