Suche
Mein Konto
Bitcoin Premium Tops 60% in Nigeria as Demand Grows
The price of Bitcoin (BTC) in Nigeria has risen significantly above the global market valuation amid growing demand for the asset among citizens of the West African country. At the time of writing, BTC was trading at 17.5 million naira (approximately $38,005) on the leading Nigerian cryptocurrency exchange NairaEX. This means Nigerians will have to pay a 60% premium to the current global BTC price of $23,200. Why is Bitcoin 60% Premium in Nigeria? The development comes as demand for the leading digital asset in Nigeria has continued to rise as the government has decided to allow cash withdrawals to...
Bitcoin Premium Tops 60% in Nigeria as Demand Grows
The price of Bitcoin (BTC) in Nigeria has risen significantly above the global market valuation amid growing demand for the asset among citizens of the West African country.
At the time of writing, BTC Trade at 17.5 million naira (approximately $38,005) on leading Nigerian cryptocurrency exchange NairaEX. This means Nigerians will have to pay a 60% premium to the current global BTC price of $23,200.
Why is Bitcoin 60% Premium in Nigeria?
The development comes as demand for the leading digital asset has continued to rise in Nigeria as the government has decided to restrict cash withdrawals from banks and ATMs in a bid to achieve a cashless economy.
In December, Nigeria's central bank imposed a weekly limit of 100,000 naira ($217) and 500,000 naira ($1,085) on withdrawals for individuals and businesses, respectively. The bank added that withdrawals above this limit would attract processing fees of 5% for individuals and 10% for businesses.
At the same time, the regulator said it has set the maximum cash withdrawal per week through ATMs at 100,000 naira ($217), subject to a maximum cash withdrawal of 20,000 naira ($43) per day. The guidelines went into effect on January 9, 2023.
The announcement of the withdrawal limit came days before Nigeria redesigned its currency to combat counterfeiting, prevent illegal financial transactions and promote a cashless economy by reducing the number of new banknotes that can be withdrawn and the number of dirty notes circulating in the economy.
Not the first time
Meanwhile, this is not the first time that Bitcoin is trading at a premium in Nigeria. In early 2021, when the central bank banned financial institutions from providing services to cryptocurrency exchanges, BTC traded at a 36% premium.
Following the Nigerian government's move to achieve a cashless economy, thereby limiting the availability of cash, Nigerians' interest in BTC has increased in recent months.
According to data from analytics platform Google Trends, investors in Nigeria are more interested in buying Bitcoin than investors in the US.
.