47% of Nigerians Use Crypto—Survey

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria is one of the countries leading cryptocurrency adoption, with 47 per cent of the population owning or using digital currencies daily, according to a global survey.

According to Statista Global Consumer Survey, consumers from countries in Africa, Asia, and South America were most likely to own or use cryptos in 2023.

In Nigeria, where trading via official channels remains banned, the report showed that one out of three respondents in Nigeria uses digital currencies daily.

After a challenging 2022, the global crypto market revenue is expected to double and hit nearly $38 billion this year, and Nigeria may play a considerable role in that.

It was noted that more than half of that value would come from the United States and the United Kingdom, the world’s leading crypto markets. However, the two countries are not even in the top ten when talking about crypto adoption.

According to data presented by BitcoinCasinos.com, Nigeria, with a higher population, is top, while Turkey is ranked in second place, with 47 per cent of the population also owning or using digital coins.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) follows with a 31 per cent crypto adoption rate, while Indonesia and Brazil round the top five list, with 29 per cent and 28 per cent, respectively.

The Statista data showed Western countries have four times smaller crypto adoption rates. It noted that around 16 per cent of the population in the United States uses or owns cryptocurrencies, ranking behind countries like Switzerland, South Korea, and Norway.

Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy have even lower 12 per cent and 11 per cent crypto adoption rates in 2023.

Statistics show China and Japan have the smallest share of crypto owners in their population among all surveyed countries, 10 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively.

The Statista survey also showed some countries saw much bigger crypto adoption growth in 2023 than others, with Indonesia leading this chart, with a 10 per cent increase year-over-year and 29 per cent of its population now using or owning digital coins.

Turkey ranked second with a 7 per cent crypto adoption growth between 2022 and 2023, while Brazil and India followed, with a 5 per cent increase, respectively.

On the other hand, Argentina saw the biggest crypto ownership decline of 9 per cent, with 26 per cent of the country`s population now using cryptocurrencies, down from 35 per cent a year ago, and Japan’s share of crypto owners dropped by 7 per cent to only 6 per cent in 2023.

Recently, the Nigerian government approved the implementation of the National Blockchain Policy for Nigeria.

The new policy gives hope to Nigerian crypto traders and enthusiasts still reeling from the effects of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s crypto ban directive, but analysts note that this does not mean the embargo will be lifted any time soon.