Nigeria’s Bureau de Change operators have urged the government to outlaw Binance, a digital asset exchange, on the grounds that it has seriously weakened the naira.
According to Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, the head of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Binance is an important platform for the country’s secondary markets.
“If you know about Binance, you will know that Binance trading is becoming the anchorage of both the investors and exporters window and the parallel market, which is unfortunate,” Gwadabe stated in a recent interview.
“So, we have to do something that can stop Binance.”
The naira has struggled this year, with economic turmoil, a currency redesign, the consequent cash shortage, and a change in presidency all playing a part. Since President Bola Tinubu took over in May, he has overseen major changes at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), including the ouster and prosecution of former Governor Godwin Emefiele.
In June, Tinubu abandoned the currency peg that CBN had implemented for years, allowing free naira trading on the open market. A day after the move, the naira recorded its largest single-day dip to trade at 750 to the dollar.
CBN has been working to prop up the naira since, and according to Bureau de Change operators, banning Binance should be the first step.
“As I speak, Binance is the most liquid market; they do 1.2 million transactions per second. So, it’s a very liquid market, but that is not a scary status; we can break it through our local content and peculiarities… we need to ban Binance, and the only way to do so is to have liquidity,” Gwabede stated.
The Bureau de Change operators are the latest to ring the alarm bells on Binance in Nigeria. A week ago, the Nigerian securities regulator warned the public against investing with the exchange, alleging that it has been operating illegally.