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Nigeria’s eNaira CBDC Goes Live
The eNaira was developed by fintech company Bitt, whose digital currency management system is also behind the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank’s CBDC.
Updated May 11, 2023, 4:30 p.m. Published Oct 25, 2021, 3:12 p.m. 1 min read
Nigeria’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eNaira, is live following an announcement by President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday.
- The official unveiling of the eNaira – designed to complement Nigeria’s physical currency, not replace it – took place Monday; it had been announced last week.
- The eNaira was developed by fintech company Bitt, whose digital currency management system (DCMS) is also behind the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank’s CBDC.
- Two applications for using the CBDC – eNaira speed wallet and eNaira merchant wallet – are available for download from the Google and Apple app stores.
- The eNaira was originally slated for launch on Oct. 1, but was delayed in deference to the 61st anniversary of Nigerian independence that same day.
- Some 500 million eNaira ($1.21 million) have already been minted, central bank Governor Godwin Emefiele said at the official launch.
- Nigeria’s government and central bank struggled with the rise of cryptocurrency in the country, leading to a ban on crypto transactions within the banking sector in February. Four months later, plans were announced to introduce the eNaira.
Read more: Nigeria’s CBDC: The Good, Bad and Ugly
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