UK’s Blockchain.com targets crypto exchange licence in Nigeria as it expands to Africa  

According to Bloomberg, the company is looking to grow in countries including Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa, and this quarter is planning a physical office in Nigeria, which is the firm’s “fastest-growing market” in West Africa.

“Applying for a crypto-exchange license in Nigeria is a top priority,” Bloomberg quoted Blockchain.com’s General Manager for Africa Operations, Owenize Odia.

While crypto trading is still illegal in most African nations and trading activities are closely monitored by central banks, some countries are enacting laws to regulate crypto exchanges.

“Nigeria has taken meaningful steps toward creating a clear framework for crypto. In Ghana, draft rules released by the central bank highlight its intention to begin regulating cryptocurrency and related platforms by the end of September 2025,” Odia said.

Blockchain.com was valued at about $14 billion in 2022, following a financing round in which companies including Lightspeed Venture Partners and Baillie Gifford & Co participated. The company has 37 million verified users, with 92 million wallets created and more than $1 trillion transacted, according to its website.

Before the signing of the Investments and Securities Act (ISA 2025), which makes provisions for crypto regulation in Nigeria, the SEC had last August granted an Approval-in-Principle to two crypto exchanges, Quidax and Busha, greenlighting its readiness to regulate the crypto industry in the country.

The two exchanges were approved under the Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Program (ARIP) program of the Commission.

In addition to that, the Commission also admitted four companies to test their models and technology under its Regulatory Incubation (RI) Program.

The four firms are digital assets offering platforms, which include Trovotech Ltd, Wrapped CBDC Ltd, Dream City Capital, and HousingExhange.NG Ltd.