Ghana's parliament approves legislation to legalize cryptocurrency

Ghana’s parliament recently passed legislation that effectively legalizes cryptocurrency trading and activities.

The passage of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill into law was announced by Bank of Ghana (BoG) Governor Johnson Asiama on Sunday.

The bill, which legalizes crypto in Ghana, is the response of the country’s parliament to central bank concerns about the widening and unregulated use of crypto as an alternative asset by its citizens.

Is crypto legal in Ghana?

With the passage of the bill, the country takes a step towards facilitating the licensing of crypto platforms and properly supervising activity, Bank of Ghana Governor Johnson Asiama said during the weekend in the capital, Accra.

“What this means is that now we have the framework to manage it and to manage the risks that can involve that kind of activity […] These are not just legal milestones; they are enablers of better policies, stronger supervision and more effective regulation,” Asiama said.

It means that people dabbling in crypto in Ghana can do so with the full backing of the law and will not face arrest. The central bank hopes this will improve crypto transparency and regulation after reports claimed that about 3 million Ghanaians, or 17% of the adult population, deal in the virtual currency.

That small percentage was able to process about $3 billion worth of crypto transactions in Ghana in the year through June 2024, according to estimates by Web3 Africa Group, an Accra-based company planning to set up crypto exchanges in Africa.

According to Asiama, the law ensures that “emerging activity is brought within clear, accountable, and well-governed boundaries.” He claims regulatory oversight will “lower costs for banks, improve customer experience, support small and medium-sized enterprises and traders.”

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) will be the primary regulator of the sector and will act with powers to license and supervise virtual asset service providers (VASPs), including exchanges, wallet providers, and custody services. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may also share oversight in some areas.

While the bill legalizes crypto, it should be noted that it does not make it a legal tender. The country’s national currency, the cedi, will remain the legal tender.

Ghana joins African countries pushing crypto adoption

Ghana’s parliament has regulated cryptocurrency activity just as the country emerged as a significant player in crypto adoption across the region.

According to Chainalysis’ 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report, Ghana currently ranks among the top five Sub-Saharan African countries by total crypto value received between July 2024 and June 2025. And that was before the country’s parliament passed the bill legalizing crypto.

Still, despite its current ranking, Ghana falls behind Nigeria in terms of crypto activity. Nigeria has dominated the region, receiving at least $92 billion in crypto value over the period, or nearly three times the amount recorded by South Africa, the report showed.

The Sub-Saharan region received over $205 billion in on-chain value, a value that has gone up by about 52% from the previous year. This growth makes it the third-fastest growing region in the world, ranked behind Asia-Pacific and Latin America, according to Chainalysis.

Now that Ghana has legalized crypto, more inflows and activities are expected, and observers have noted that the country’s participation in international regulatory frameworks could boost investor confidence and international cooperation.

Other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, aside from Ghana and Nigeria, that have made similar moves regarding crypto and created regulatory frameworks include Kenya, South Africa, and Ethiopia.

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