THE National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) has ordered all banks in the country to refrain from ‘any crypto-related activities’ until a regulatory framework is in place.
NBR Acting Governor, Soraya Hakuziyaremye, claims that because most crypto assets are unregulated, users lack the ‘guarantees and safeguards associated with regulated financial services.’
Rwanda is the latest African country to join Zimbabwe and Nigeria in prohibiting banks from processing cryptocurrency transactions.
On February 5, 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria released a three-paragraph statement that ended financial institutions processing crypto transactions.
Zimbabwe, on the other hand, ordered all banks to stop processing crypto transactions, and in Liberia, the government ordered a local crypto startup to halt operations.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), only one-quarter of sub-Saharan African countries formally regulate cryptocurrency.
What’s more, two-thirds have imposed some restrictions, and six countries, including Cameroon, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and the Republic of Congo, have banned crypto.
