Africa Leads in Stablecoin Adoption as Governments Race to Regulate Digital Assets
With more than 54 million digital asset users across Africa, the continent is witnessing a surge in crypto adoption, particularly in stablecoins, led globally by Sub-Saharan Africa.
In response, governments are moving swiftly to establish regulatory frameworks that promote consumer protection, financial transparency, and innovation, according to a new report by Yellow Card, a leading stablecoin infrastructure provider.
The report, The State of Digital Assets Regulation, provides the first comprehensive analysis of digital asset regulation across the continent. It marks a milestone in Africa’s rapidly evolving digital finance ecosystem, where stablecoins and cryptocurrencies are transforming how millions access and use financial services.
Nigeria emerges as a continental and global leader, now ranked #1 worldwide in stablecoin adoption and #2 in overall digital asset usage, with 25.9 million users—representing 11.9% of the population. The report identifies other African countries with formal digital asset legislation or regulatory frameworks in place, including Botswana, Mauritius, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, and member states of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC).
Several countries are actively working toward developing regulations, including Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA/WAEMU).
However, despite high adoption rates, some countries still lack a regulatory framework. Egypt, for instance, has over 11 million crypto users—nearly 10% of its population—even though cryptocurrencies are officially banned. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Malawi, and Zimbabwe are also identified as jurisdictions where regulation lags behind user activity.
“The approach taken by regulators across Africa varies widely—from maintaining the status quo to reversing bans, establishing sandboxes, drafting legislation, or enacting comprehensive laws governing virtual asset service providers (VASPs),” said Edline Murungi, Senior Counsel at Yellow Card. “Still, in many jurisdictions, digital assets remain unregulated.”
The report highlights discrepancies in how countries address anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-financing of terrorism (CFT) obligations. In most African jurisdictions, digital assets are not classified as “foreign currency,” thereby excluding them from existing capital and foreign exchange control measures. This includes even heavily regulated markets such as South Africa.
Taxation is another emerging issue, with governments exploring how to classify and tax digital assets to boost revenue. However, a lack of clarity—particularly on whether to treat digital assets as securities, commodities, or other asset classes—has created uncertainty. In some cases, punitive tax frameworks threaten the sustainability of VASPs and the broader ecosystem.
As Africa continues to embrace digital assets, the development of robust, balanced regulation is seen as critical to enabling innovation while safeguarding users and financial systems.
The full Report on The State of Digital Assets Regulation is attached and also available here.
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