Nigeria will begin to tax virtual currencies, including cryptocurrencies, under its revamped tax reform framework, the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee has announced.
The committee’s chairman, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed this during an online public lecture organised by the Capital Market Academics of Nigeria on Wednesday.
Oyedele explained that while the new law imposes tax liabilities on digital currencies, it also exempts capital market gains, positioning regulated financial markets as a more attractive avenue for young investors.
“Virtual currency under the new law is liable to tax. Capital market gains for virtually everybody are exempted, so why are we not telling our young people that the returns on our capital market are better and that it is exempted?” he said.
He expressed concern that widespread misinformation had discouraged many young Nigerians from investing in the capital market.
According to him, many believe incorrectly that capital gains incur a 30 per cent tax, and such narratives, he argued, drive wrong investment decisions.
“Real people make bad decisions when misinformed. Narratives drive sentiments, and the latter creates our reality,” he warned.
To ensure fiscal accountability, Oyedele said the new tax law mandates that the government set aside funds solely for tax refunds. He noted that not all revenues will be shared indiscriminately anymore, but that a portion will be reserved to honour legitimate refund claims.