The FinTech Roadmap Committee of the Nigerian Capital Market was approved. The report provides that the SEC needs to decide on its preferred classification of cryptocurrencies between commodities, securities and currency. The recommended classification is either as commodities or securities but not as currency. The report also suggests that the SEC should be responsible for the regulation of virtual financial assets exchanges and develop a framework around it.
The SEC should issue guidelines and standards for White Papers and initial coin offerings (ICOs):
- Advertising and issuance procedures should be defined without ambiguity.
- The SEC should create appropriate licensing regimes for new entrants into the crowdfunding ecosystem.
- The SEC should develop a detailed framework for VFA based economy.
On anti-money laundering and 'know your customer' (KYC) procedures, the SEC should develop a stringent framework for KYC and due diligence which will apply regardless of the legal status of an ICO or token.
The SEC should also have clear taxonomies of tokens based on their nature, characteristics and economic realities as their determining factors.