Gbajabiamila seeks strong regulation of cryptocurrency

Speaker of House of Representatives Femi Gbajabiamila has called for appropriate regulatory framework to guide the use of cryptocurrency in the country.

Gbajabiamila made the call in Abuja when the management team of Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), led by the Managing Director, Mr Umaru Ibrahim, visited him.

The Spokesman of the agency, Mr Sunday Olufemi, reported the encounter in a statement on Thursday.

Olufemi quoted the Speaker as saying that the call was necessary, especially now that the “entire world is exploring ways of mainstreaming cryptocurrencis into the global financial landscape”.

Gbajabiamila said that only recently, there was a meeting of world leaders in Osaka, Japan, to deliberate on the subject.

“The NDIC and other safety-net participants in the country must not be left behind in the adoption of appropriate regulatory framework to deal with the prevalence of cryptocurrencies in the global financial space,” Gbajabiamila said.

The Speaker commended NDIC team for the visit, describing it as a right step towards fostering a harmonious working relationship between the legislative and executive arms of government.

He assured that the House, under his leadership, would ensure that the appropriate committee was assigned to handle the oversight functions of the corporation.

Earlier, the NDIC managing director had advised Nigerians to exercise maximum caution in the adoption of cryptocurrencies in their financial transactions.

Ibrahim warned that while various forms of digital currencies currently in operation had their positive and negative attributes, those patronising them risked losing their savings.

This is because the medium, according to him, is largely unregulated and unrecognised by the traditional central banks in almost all financial jurisdictions.

The statement quoted the Chairman of the NDIC board, Mrs Ronke Sokefun, as saying earlier that the corporation remained a critical player in the Nigerian financial safety net.

Sokefun said that the NDIC had contributed “immensely to the growth and stability of the nation’s financial sector in the 30 years of its operations.

She added that the agency recently became the first public sector institution in Nigeria to be awarded three International Standard Organisation (ISO) certifications simultaneously by the British Standards Institute (BSI) in view of its result oriented system, processes and procedures.

The board chairman solicited the assistance of the House in the passage of the NDIC Act Amendment Bill currently before the National Assembly.