Share this article

Nigeria's CBDC eNaira Used for Nearly $10M Worth of Transactions Since October

The eNaira app has been downloaded 840,000 times and has 270,000 active wallets

Updated May 11, 2023, 5:00 p.m. Published Aug 19, 2022, 12:11 p.m.
The eNaira wallet registration page (CoinDesk)
The eNaira wallet registration page (CoinDesk)

Nigeria's central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eNaira, has been used to carry out transactions worth 4 billion naira ($9.3 million) since it was introduced last October, according to country's central bank governor.

In a speech on Thursday, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele described the volume and value of transactions on the platform as "remarkable," noting the eNaira app has been downloaded 840,000 times and now has about 270,000 active wallets.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the State of Crypto Newsletter today. See all newsletters

Nigeria has a population of about 200 million, and it is the largest economy in Africa with a gross domestic product of about $430 billion.

It is estimated, however, that around 40% of the population doesn't have a bank account, including 59 million unbanked adults, a matter that the CBN intends to tackle with the CBDC. The bank is seeking to get 8 million more people to start using the eNaira platform in its second phase.

That phase begins next week, when both banked and unbanked Nigerians will be able to open a eNaira wallet by dialing a four-digit code on their mobile phones, Emefiele said.

Nigeria was the second country to introduce a CBDC, following the Bahamas a year earlier. In the months preceding the eNaira's inception, the CBN attempted to stave off cryptocurrency use among the public, ordering banks to close any accounts that had crypto transactions.

Read more: Colombia Explores Creating a CBDC to Combat Tax Evasion






More For You

Protocol Research: GoPlus Security

GP Basic Image

What to know:

  • As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
  • GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
  • Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.

More For You

40% of Canadian Crypto Users Flagged for Tax Evasion Risk, Canadian Tax Authority Reveals

canada fintrac

Canada’s tax agency says legal gaps limit its ability to track crypto-related income as it recovers $100 million through audits and pushes for tighter regulation.

What to know:

  • The Canadian Revenue Agency reports that 40% of crypto platform users are evading taxes or are at high risk of non-compliance.
  • CRA's cryptoasset program has 35 auditors working on over 230 files, resulting in $100 million in taxes collected over three years.
  • New legislation to combat financial crimes, including crypto tax evasion, is expected by Spring 2026, as announced by the Minister of Finance.