The Central Bank of Nigeria has launched the second cohort of its regulatory sandbox, opening a supervised testing track for crypto and virtual asset firms seeking to innovate under official oversight.
The programme, announced in a statement signed by Hakama Sidi Ali, Acting Director of Corporate Communications, now runs on two dedicated tracks aimed at emerging technologies the CBN believes could strengthen Nigeria’s financial system while keeping consumer protection and market stability intact.
The first, the Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) Track, is built for solutions involving virtual assets, stablecoins, payments, settlement, custody and wallet infrastructure that require live testing under regulatory watch — one of the clearest signals yet that the apex bank is willing to engage directly with crypto-adjacent innovation, in a supervised capacity, rather than regulate it purely from the outside.
The second, the Data-Enabled Financial Services (Non-VASP) Track, is aimed at innovations that use secure digital infrastructure and permission-based data sharing to expand financial inclusion, improve payments and credit access, and strengthen risk management.
The CBN framed the sandbox as a controlled testing ground where eligible innovators can trial new products, services and business models directly with the regulator, allowing both sides to learn from the process as it unfolds — insight the bank says will feed into how it shapes future regulatory frameworks for Nigeria’s digital financial sector.
Getting in won’t be automatic. The CBN said applications will be judged on the strength of the innovation itself, how ready the applicant is for controlled live testing, the potential benefit to consumers or the market, the robustness of governance and risk management, and how well-designed the proposed testing plan is. Firms that make it through will operate within boundaries agreed with the CBN covering consumer protection, operational resilience, cybersecurity and regulatory reporting.
Crucially, the CBN was explicit about what sandbox entry does not mean, stating that “participation in the Regulatory Sandbox does not constitute a licence, authorisation, or approval to operate outside the approved testing parameters.”
That distinction matters most for virtual asset firms: a spot in the VASP Track gives them a supervised space to test live products alongside the CBN, but it is not, on its own, regulatory approval to operate more broadly — worth keeping in mind given how much ambiguity has surrounded virtual asset operations in Nigeria in recent years.
Applications for Cohort 2 open today, August 12, 2026, and close on August 31, 2026. Interested organisations can apply through the CBN Regulatory Sandbox Portal at sandbox.cbn.gov.ng before the deadline.
