The world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance announced on Monday that it now allows both withdrawals and deposits in naira. This means that traders within the shores of Nigeria can now deposit and withdraw naira directly from their Binance wallets without the need for peer-to-peer transfers or third parties.
As seen in a company statement, Binance said that its decision to add a fiat gateway for the naira is part of its mission to increase Nigeria’s adoption of cryptocurrencies. This, according to the company, will reduce the difficulties that merchants and investors face when trading cryptocurrencies.
“Binance is pleased to announce that it had added a fiat gateway for Nigerian Naira (NGN) as part of Binance’s mission to increase the adoption and mainstream accessibility of crypto. Users are now able to deposit and withdraw NGN to and from their Binance wallets,” Binance said.
Binance is also encouraging both current and prospective customers to comply with its new Know Your Customer (KYC) requirement to be able to start using the fiat gateway and to avoid fraud on the platform.
It is important to note that cryptocurrencies remain banned in Nigeria, after the country’s apex bank prohibited commercial banks from facilitating crypto-related payments. Binance was among a handful of cryptocurrency exchanges that stopped accepting deposits and withdrawals in naira; Binance placed a hold on withdrawals of deposits using naira in February 2021, as a result of its payment partners complying with the CBN’s directive on cryptocurrencies. Binance, however, promised to work out modalities that would allow Nigerians to continue to trade on its platform. It is finally announced the fiat gateway.
Binance recognizes the importance of the Nigerian market. Despite the CBN ban, Nigeria remains Africa’s biggest crypto market and also has one of the highest rates of crypto adoption across the globe. The new development which comes while the ban on cryptocurrencies still exists, therefore, places huge importance on Nigerian traders.
