The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, has revealed that Nigeria will launch a digital currency. With this, Nigeria tracks other nations which plan or have launched digital currencies. China is expected to roll out the e-yuan, its digital currency, at scale, later in the year. The United States has also started work on e-dollars.
The apex bank boss revealed this plan during the 279th MPR meeting held today in Abuja- “We are committed in the CBN and I can assure everybody that digital currency will come to life even in Nigeria” – Nairametrics reports.
He said, “We have carried out our investigation and we found out that a substantial percentage of our people are getting involved in cryptocurrency which is not the best. Don’t get me wrong, some may be legitimate but most are illegitimate.”
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Under cryptocurrency and Bitcoin, Nigeria comes 2nd while in the global side of the economy, Nigeria comes 27th. We are still conducting our investigation and we will make our data available.”
Emefiele voiced his concerns surrounding digital assets using the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk’s uncertainty as an example.
“We saw the market collapse. Initially, when Elon Musk tweeted around the time when we said our banking and payment facilities are no longer available for cryptocurrency transactions and he tweeted that he will invest $1.5 billion and the price (Bitcoin) went up. He now tweeted and raised a few concerns and the thing (Cryptocurrency) plunged.”
To a large extent, this is what we are asking: if you must ban crypto in Nigeria, provide an alternative to Nigerian youth. Now, CBN has copied, loud and clear. Make it happen, big boss.
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Comment: Bold move, but is it truly a right direction in the current state of things? Africa needs a continental currency and if digital the better. China is pegging their new digital currency against their strong Fiat currency, if Nigeria has to peg it’s e currency against the naira, the solution is similar to putting old wine in new skin.
A united Africa being led by one unique currency is what Nigeria should be pushing for and working towards. Not another opportunity to spend money on flamboyant projects that we know technologically our governments cannot maintain effectively.
It is strange, because I do not see any private sector stakeholders giving this move a thumbs up, as it is not in any way going to resolve the import export problems plaguing the Naira. Rather is will only cause more problems for the economy managing two currencies when they cannot reconcile the local black market and the CBN dollar rate for banks.
This is not a smart move by any common sense reasoning based on the current state of things within the nation. My two cents
My Response: Great points. Crypto will not save Nigeria. Factories (old type and modern versions like startups) and warehouses will remain the solutions. Yet, doing nothing is not an option because a new currency is emerging and if we want to predict the future, we have to create it.
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Making vague promises without timeline sounds political at best, Powell told when to expect Feds release of its findings, and here our man is just telling us that digital currency would come to life; it sounds too weak and unconvincing.
While at it, all our energy and intellectual capital should be devoted to growing productive ventures, this coin thing should never distract us from mammoth work facing us, if we are not going to disappoint future generations.
It’s only high level of productivity that can beat inflation, virtual wealth can never do that, we are becoming too lazy as a people; we are better than this.
” So, with China gone, the US out, UK off even if unspoken, we rest assured that the third world counties would follow suit since all we do not do hard thinking here, and the complex thinking like financial engineering is majorly outsourced, hence, that is the end of the coin”
I wrote the above when we spoke on US implementation of digital dollar. It scary that we have scare thinkers here. When can we start taking the lead
I wrote the above, sorry, I thought I was logged in.
Moving on, it beats me how learned people think that inflation can be killed by virtual currency. It has never and would never happen- rather a surge in the bench market currency devalues your countries currency creating hyperinflation .