India and Nigeria have become leaders in crypto adoption despite the regulatory barriers and uncertainties surrounding digital assets in these countries.
According to a recent report by blockchain research firm Chainalysis, from the fourth quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024, there was a significant rise in the total value of global crypto transactions.
India Takes the Lead
India, home to over 1.450 billion people, has seen explosive growth in crypto usage over the past few years. Despite strict regulatory crackdowns by the country’s regulatory body, crypto adoption in India has flourished.
Similar to last year’s report, India has once again topped the Chainalysis index, maintaining its leading position as the highest-ranked country in crypto adoption. The impressive performance highlights that local investors remain committed to digital assets, even in the face of heavy taxation and tight regulations to curb crypto activity.
India has also outpaced 154 other nations to secure the top position for DeFi adoption, according to the 2023 Global Crypto Adoption Index. A report on the county’s crypto landscape revealed that 17.6% of Indian crypto investments are allocated to DeFi utility tokens such as SushiSwap, DIA, Yearn.Finance, DFI.Money, Aave, Compound, and others.
Nigeria Ranks Second-Largest Position
Nigeria, on the other hand, ranked second in crypto adoption. The African largest economy also ranked second in crypto use in 2023, according to the report.
Nigeria is the only African country ranked among the top 20 in global crypto adoption.
Despite the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) banning financial institutions from facilitating crypto transactions in early 2021, the country continued to lead in P2P trading volumes globally until the federal government of Nigeria, through the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), imposed a ban on peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. This caused crypto exchange giants like Binance and OKX to cease P2P operations for investors in the country. The proposed ban also aims to implement control over the country’s crypto market.
Just recently, Nigeria’s SEC announced plans to crack down on unregulated crypto exchanges, businesses, and individuals operating in the country. The report noted that the government would commence enforcement action on entities attempting to provide crypto services without appropriate regulation.
