Economy
The Impact of Digital Asset Trading Market on Nigeria’s Economy
What are Digital Assets?
Digital assets are simply items whose content is stored in electronic format.
With that definition, you would most likely be thinking about images, music, movies, documents, etc. The truth is, those indeed are digital assets. Thanks to technology, these assets have developed far beyond that, and are also digital currencies.
What Are The Types of Digital Assets?
Based on this article, I would be focusing on two major types of digital assets which serve as a source of money. Gift cards and cryptocurrencies.
Gift Cards
Gift cards or gift certificates are a type of debit card, pre-loaded with a specific amount of money that could be used for a variety of purchases at a designated brand.
Gift cards serve as alternative sources of payment at designated brands. For example; A $100 Amazon gift card could be redeemed to make purchases online or any of the multiple Amazon stores located in the United States.
These cards are also excellent presents to give a loved one on their special day. When a birthday, wedding anniversary, baby shower, graduation, etc is coming up, gifting your loved one a loaded gift card from their favourite brand would always put you in their good books.
Presently, the numerous gift card brands could not all be possibly be listed. However, some of the notable and familiar names include; Amazon, Itunes, Steam, Walmart, Apple, Google Play Gift Cards, etc.
Cryptocurrencies
What are cryptocurrencies?
Cryptocurrencies are Binary data that were designed to serve as a means of exchange of goods and services. Created with the use of blockchain technology, these coins are secured by Cryptography.
Currently, there are over 10,000 coins in the crypto market. You should be familiar with certain names like Ethereum, Bitcoin, Tether, etc.
Evolution of Digital Asset trading in Nigeria
To those who are just getting accustomed to digital asset trading in Nigeria, you should consider yourselves lucky. There is a very huge difference between what it is now and what it was back then.
A couple of years back, most Nigerians were not familiar with this concept. A crypto or gift card holder in Nigeria, wanting to exchange his asset for cash was practically embarking on an impossible mission here.
It was just not feasible. This was not a result of the difficulty of this process per se, but the awareness, There were a lot of dark clouds regarding these assets here in Nigeria, and as a result, people felt very hesitant to own or collect them. With very little demand for this service, there was no incentive for individuals to provide supply.
How did we get here? you may be wondering. Thanks to certain trading platforms that decided to pioneer the movement, the market was able to grow over the years.
The founders of these early platforms also witnessed the vast scarcity in the market and knew that they most likely won’t be the only ones going through this. They leapt and decided to create a solution to this problem without ripping people off.
Word got around, and many other Nigerians developed the confidence to trust these platforms with their assets. As the demand for this service started growing rapidly, other entrepreneurs saw the opportunity and decided to enter the market.
In Nigeria, what was once perceived as a myth, is not only possible but has been made very simple.
The Impact of The Digital Asset Trading Market on Nigeria’s Economy
Another important aspect to look at after the evolution of this market is its impact. Has this market affected Nigeria’s economy Positively or negatively?
I believe that everything in life has its pros and cons. It would be up to you to decide if the pros outweigh the cons for you or vice versa.
Since the introduction of digital asset trading on a national level, Nigerian citizens have enjoyed the ease of transactions. Day-to-day activities such as payments and exchange have been made simpler and faster amongst Nigerians and even beyond.
The increase in patronage of this service has profited such platforms, which has led to its continuity and expansion. This act has employed various intelligent Nigerians.
This market has also aided international business transactions between Nigerians and individuals and companies in the diaspora.
For example, a graphics designer or web developer working remotely in Nigeria could be freelancing for a company located in America and receive payment straight to his BTC wallet or the equivalent in gift cards, which saves the several hassles faced in the banking halls or waiting for hours or days for the money to arrive from outside the country.
With the massive rise in demand for this service, unfortunately, there was also an increase in digital asset scams in the market. Crypto and gift card owners have fallen victim to these scammers throughout exchanging their assets for cash.
Quite frankly, this would only happen when adequate research is not conducted. With money, you should be patient. There should be enough background checks done with whoever you are entrusting your money with. Till today there are still various victims of BVN and real estate scams. This would not stop us from using our traditional banks or buying and renting properties.
There are still legitimate exchange platforms to sell gift cards in Nigeria which could be used to avoid scams.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited was further pulled back by 0.50 per cent on Tuesday as a result of profit-taking in some heavyweight stocks.
Like the preceding session, the key sectors of Customs Street were depressed yesterday, with the banking index down by 2.82 per cent. The consumer goods declined by 0.52 per cent, the insurance space lost 0.10 per cent, and the energy counter shrank by 0.03 per cent, while the industrial goods segment was flat.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) eased by 1,437.54 points to 241,984.80 points from 243,422.34 points, and the market capitalisation contracted by N922 billion to N155.204 trillion from N156.126 trillion.
The worst-performing stock was International Energy Insurance, which gave up 10.00 per cent to close at N5.76. Vitafoam dipped by 10.00 per cent to N189.00, Austin Laz crashed by 9.93 per cent to N3.90, SUNU Assurances depleted by 9.82 per cent to N3.58, and Sovereign Trust Insurance lost 8.37 per cent to finish at N2.30.
On the flip side, Conoil gained 9.79 per cent to trade at N213.00, Prestige Assurance also expanded by 9.79 per cent to N1.57, Neimeth jumped 9.74 per cent to N8.45, eTranzact chalked up 9.40 per cent to close at N16.30, and Cornerstone Insurance improved by 9.09 per cent to N5.40.
The bourse witnessed heavy sell-offs in some equities, with Sterling Holdings recording the sale of 100.9 million units worth N782.8 million to lead the activity log. UAC Nigeria transacted 49.4 million units valued at N9.1 billion, Access Holdings sold 28.8 million units for N699.3 million, Zenith Bank exchanged 29.4 million units worth N3.0 billion, and GTCO traded 20.2 million units valued at N2.7 billion.
At the close of transactions, market participants bought and sold 535.5 million shares worth N36.8 billion in 55,123 deals compared with 569.1 million shares valued at N31.4 billion traded in 77,652 deals on Monday. This implied that the trading value went up by 17.20 per cent, while the trading volume and the number of deals went down by 5.90 per cent and 29.01 per cent, respectively.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange was further down by 0.48 per cent on Monday, June 16, as a result of the losses printed by three bellwethers, led by MRS Oil Plc, which fell by N15.80 to N142.20 per unit from N158.00 per unit.
Further, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc dipped by N2.94 to close at N180.14 per share versus the previous day’s N183.08 per share, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc crumbled by 38 Kobo to N80.24 per share from N80.62 per share.
Consequently, the market capitalisation of the trading platform moderated by N12.55 billion to N2.605 trillion from N2.605 trillion, while the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) weakened by 20.98 points to 4,333.35 points from 4,354.33 points.
During the trading day, the value of transactions surged by 16.5 per cent to N45.6 million from the preceding session’s N39.2 million, and the number of deals soared by 34.8 per cent to 31 deals from 23 deals, while the volume of securities declined by 30.6 per cent to 688,290 units from 992,164 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with a turnover of 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion. The second spot was occupied by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc, with 2.3 billion sold for N6.5 billion, and the third position was taken by CSCS Plc, with 66.9 million units exchanged for N4.6 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira suffered a 0.55 per cent or 91 Kobo loss against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Tuesday, June 16, closing at N1,357.18 /$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,356.27/$1.
It also weakened against the Pound Sterling at the official market during the session by N11.53 to trade at N1,820.39/£1 versus Monday’s rate of N1,808.86/£1, but appreciated against the Euro by N2.06 to quote at N1,573.79/€1 versus the preceding session’s N1,575.85/€1.
In the black market, the Nigerian currency crashed against the Dollar yesterday by N5 to sell for N1,385/$1, in contrast to the N1,380/$1 it was traded a day earlier, and at the GTBank FX desk, it traded flat at N1,373/$1.
Nigeria’s gross external reserves surged to $50.505 billion, the highest international Dollar balance since January 2009, affirming expectations that the local currency will remain along a stable band. The FX reserves position was buoyed by inflows from oil sales.
In its Article IV consultation report on Nigeria, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that the Naira remains significantly undervalued despite recent gains from FX reforms. It noted that its Real Effective Exchange Rate (REER) assessment showed the local currency was still trading below levels supported by the country’s economic fundamentals, saying the Naira should have traded around N1,142.04/$1 using the end-of-2025 exchange rate benchmark, or N1,130.88/$1 when calculated using the average exchange rate for the year.
As for the cryptocurrency market, prices showed renewed risk appetite as total 24-hour trading volume jumped 51 per cent to $207 billion, open interest rose 2.4 per cent to $113.41 billion, and liquidations surged 64 per cent to $561 million, with shorts accounting for the bulk of the forced exits, according to Coindesk data.
Cardano (ADA) slid 2.7 per cent to $0.1731, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped 1.6 per cent to $605.80, Ripple (XRP) declined by 1.5 per cent to $1.22, Bitcoin (BTC) fell 0.8 per cent to $65,739.70, Dogecoin (DOGE) also tumbled by 0.6 per cent to $0.0873, and TRON (TRX) depreciated by 0.6 per cent to $0.3166.
However, Ethereum (ETH) grew by 0.5 per cent to $1,795.40, and Solana (SOL) rose by 0.2 per cent to $73.81, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.
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