Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed a N30 million registration fee and minimum capital requirement of up to N2 billion for operators in Nigeria’s digital asset market.
Gatekeepers News reports that the proposals are contained in the commission’s draft rules on “Digital and Virtual Asset Operations, Custody and Markets”, released on August 20, 2026.
The framework is aimed at strengthening regulation of digital and virtual asset activities, including issuance, trading, custody, transfer and settlement.
Under the proposed framework, digital asset exchanges (DAXs), digital asset custodians (DACs), digital asset platform operators (DAPOs), digital asset offering platforms (DAOPs) and real-world asset tokenisation platforms (RATOPs) would each pay a N30 million registration fee.
SEC also proposed a minimum capital requirement of N2 billion each for digital asset exchanges and custodians. DAPOs, DAOPs and RATOPs would require N500 million each, while virtual asset service providers (VASPs) would have a minimum capital requirement of N200 million.
The proposed rules further require applicants to pay a N100,000 processing fee and N300,000 application fee, while regulated entities would be required to maintain a fidelity insurance bond covering at least 25 percent of their minimum paid-up capital.
The commission also proposed ongoing supervisory charges based on the turnover of regulated entities. For fully registered digital asset exchanges, the proposed charge is 0.025 percent of adjusted turnover, while other regulated entities would pay 0.015 percent.
For operators under the Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP), the proposed supervisory fees would be lower, with digital asset exchanges paying 0.015 percent of adjusted turnover and other entities paying 0.0075 percent.
In addition, the SEC proposed limits on retail investors’ participation in digital asset offerings. Under the proposal, a retail investor would not invest more than N1 million in a single issuer or N10 million across digital asset offerings within a 12-month period, subject to any changes the commission may prescribe.
The commission said the proposed rules would apply to entities operating in Nigeria, providing services to Nigerian residents or targeting Nigerian investors, whether directly, indirectly or through digital platforms. Stakeholders have two weeks from the August 20 publication date to submit comments on the proposed framework.
