People get into cryptocurrencies for a variety of reasons. But for many Nigerians, it is primarily about preserving the purchasing power of their wealth, whether big or small, huge or tiny. But no matter what your motivation or circumstances might be, choosing the right place to acquire cryptocurrency is equally important to achieving your goal.

And the detailed exposition below will guide you through the process of finding that place.

What to Look for in Cryptocurrency Exchanges

There are a number of options to buy and sell cryptocurrency in Nigeria today, and the ones that got most traction are centralized exchanges and peer-to-peer (p2p) marketplaces. Given the overall negative attitude of Nigerian authorities toward cryptocurrencies, p2p marketplaces have a substantial advantage over centralized exchanges.  

Unlike their more fiat-centered cousins, these platforms are not involved in fiat transactions for the simple reason the users on p2p marketplaces are making payments entirely on their own, without the marketplace standing in between. A typical p2p marketplace exists solely within the crypto space, with no fiat onramps and offramps attached to it.

And this is a big deal in countries like Nigeria. After the Nigerian central bank cracked down on cryptocurrency operations in February 2021, centralized exchanges had to either abandon the Nigerian crypto ship altogether or find loopholes in order to enable fiat deposits and withdrawals in the Naira, the national currency of Nigeria. 

P2p marketplaces, on the other hand, got away completely unscathed. In fact, they have only gained in popularity – at the expense of their less lucky centralized competitors.

At the same time, however, it doesn’t necessarily imply that a particular p2p marketplace is, by its very nature, better than any of the centralized exchanges currently active in Nigeria. Then, to make a viable and actionable comparison, we need to come up with a set of criteria with which to measure a concrete exchange or marketplace.

And from the perspective of a regular crypto user, the list of these yardsticks includes:

• registration and identity verification
• supported cryptocurrencies
• payment methods
• fee structure (fee schedule)
• safety of funds

Registration typically involves providing an email address or mobile phone number and entering a verification code sent to your email or phone (following a link). After that, you may or may not be required to go through an identity verification process before you can actually start trading. And that’s where things can make a real difference across the board. 

The number of supported cryptocurrencies makes up another important metric to consider when choosing an exchange. Some exchanges support only a few cryptocurrencies, while others on the order of a few hundreds.

However, the high number of supported cryptocurrencies taken on its own is useless unless you can exchange these cryptos to your favorite fiat and then pull out the gains. This is where payment methods come into play. 

Fee structure, or fee schedule, includes trading as well as deposit and withdrawal fees. In general, you don’t have to pay fees on cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals (besides network fees). But this is not the case when you move fiat to and from your account, and it largely depends on the payment method used. 

Safety of funds is one the most crucial aspects you should pay special attention to. Still, it is not so much about protecting your account with 2FA or SMS (modern exchanges and marketplaces are pretty advanced in this department anyway) as about understanding the risks of losing your funds due to a host of causes other than just account hacks.

With these metrics established, let’s now see how different exchanges and marketplaces do against each other.

Top Places to Buy and Sell Cryptocurrency in Nigeria

Global cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance, Coinbase and their likes allow you to trade crypto from virtually anywhere in the world (barring a few so-called rogue states). However, it makes sense to narrow the list to only exchanges where you can trade cryptocurrencies for Naira, either directly or through some other asset.

In that case, the list of places for buying crypto in Nigeria should include the following entries:

• Binance
• NairaEx
• Luno
• Remitano
• Yellow Card
• Bitpapa

This list is anything but complete as there are other avenues to get crypto in exchange for Naira. For example, payment systems such as MoonPay and BitPesa offer the Naira option, and you could buy Bitcoin at physical locations in Lagos. However, they are not trading platforms and thus are excluded in this guide.

Binance

Binance is a global cryptocurrency trading platform that offers both an orderbook-based exchange and a p2p marketplace. However, the only way to buy Bitcoin with Naira on its exchange is to trade Naira for USDT and then buy Bitcoin with USDT. 

On the other hand, you can exchange cryptocurrencies for Naira with no fees on Binance P2P regardless of whether you are using an existing ad or posting your own one.  

Pros	Cons
Huge choice of cryptocurrencies Wide range of payment options Low fees on the exchange platform (0.1% per trade) Zero-fee trading on Binance P2P	Strict verification and compliance policies Known for locking user accounts for arbitrary reasons (or no reason at all)

Keep in mind that Binance has a history of arbitrarily freezing users’ funds.

NairaEx

As its name suggests, NairaEx is endemic to Nigeria. You can buy 4 cryptocurrencies with Naira here, which are Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash. It is an exchange service (aka exchanger) that provides instant currency conversions between Naira (as well as Perfect Money) and crypto.

Pros	Cons
Supports Perfect Money Instant exchange	You need to verify your account Small choice of supported cryptocurrencies Limited number of payment methods (Perfect Money and bank transfers) Price discovery is not transparent and likely includes hidden fees

The service may come in handy when you need to quickly buy or sell crypto for Naira and don’t want to spend time taking additional steps.

Luno

Luno is a centralized exchange which is primarily active in Africa and South-East Asia. You will need to verify your account before you can trade on this platform. For Naira, Luno supports 8 trading pairs (including a stablecoin USDC). Purchasing and redeeming vouchers is the only payment option available for Nigerians on this platform presently.  

Pros	Cons
Low trading fees (0.1% per trade) Instant exchange option	Identity verification required Small choice of supported cryptocurrencies Only one option for Naira deposits and withdrawals

You would probably do better with Binance for the same amount of effort invested in verifying your account on Luno.

Remitano

Remitano is a p2p exchange which is active in Latin America, Africa and South-East Asia. It supports such cryptos as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple and a few other altcoins, as well as stablecoins USDT and BNB.

There are 5 levels of KYC on Remitano that determine how much you can trade daily. Level 1 requires phone number verification and allows you to buy up to $1000 worth of cryptocurrency. 

Pros	Cons
Wide array of payment methods Low trading fees Instant exchange option	Stringent verification policies Limited number of supported cryptocurrencies

Remitano charges 1% trading fees on traders creating ads (offer makers) and enables zero-fee trading for offer takers.

Yellow Card

Yellow Card is an exchange service available for Nigerian users and across a number of other African countries. The service requires verification, and for Tier 0, you will need to confirm your phone number and provide an email address, your full name and date of birth.

Yellow Card supports only Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT. On the plus side, it deals in a number of local currencies, and for Nigerian users, it charges around 1.60$ per trade. The payment methods include bank transfers, debit/credit cards and mobile money.

Pros	Cons
Supports an array of local currencies Offers instant exchange option	Requires verification Supports only Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT Price offered may include hidden fees

Despite its name, Yellow Card doesn’t offer any payment cards, yellow or otherwise.

Bitpapa

Bitpapa is a global p2p marketplace with a presence around the world. It supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, TON, Monero and USDT. You don’t need to verify your identity on this platform, although some traders may require that you have your phone number confirmed and/or your ID verified. 

Recently, the marketplace added support for Nigeria. Now you can pay and get paid with Naira using such payment methods as bank transfers, debit or credit cards, gift cards, electronic wallets and local payment systems (for example, Chipper Cash):

Bitpapa doesn’t charge trading and deposit fees, although you may have to pay processing fees when withdrawing crypto from the platform.

Pros	Cons
Doesn’t require verification Supports a bunch of payment methods Offers zero-fee trading Enables instant exchange Has a Telegram trading bot	Limited number of supported coins

Unlike other exchanges and marketplaces, Bitpapa has a sophisticated Telegram bot that offers a convenient way for fast buying and selling cryptocurrencies. 

Summary

To help you quickly navigate the available options for trading cryptocurrencies in Nigeria, we have compiled a table that provides a short summary of these options:

Exchange / Marketplace	Cryptocurrencies	Orderbook	P2P	Instant exchange	Payment methods	Verification	Telegram bot
Binance	600+	Yes	Yes	Yes	Bank transfers, debit/credit cards, cash	Government- issued IDs, utility bills	No
NairaEx	Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash	No	No	Yes	Perfect Money, bank transfers	Bank Verification Number, government- issued IDs, selfie	No
Luno	8	Yes	No	Yes	Vouchers	Phone number, government- issued IDs, proof of address	No
Remitano	10+	No	Yes	Yes	Bank transfers, debit/credit cards	Phone number, government- issued IDs, peer certification	No
Yellow Card	Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT	No	No	Yes	Bank transfers, debit/credit cards, mobile money	NIN Slip, driver’s license, voter card	No
Bitpapa	Bitcoin, Ethereum,  USDT, TON, Monero	No	Yes	Yes	Bank transfers, debit/credit cards, gift cards, payment systems, cash	Optional	Yes

And to sum it up, the best way to buy crypto in Nigeria is to go with a trusted and established global trading platform that offers a multitude of payment methods alongside zero-fee trading.

FAQ

Q: Can I Trade Crypto In Nigeria?
A: Yes, you can. If you want to trade crypto for Naira, there are a number of options available to Nigerians.

Q: Which Crypto Exchange Is Legal in Nigeria?
A: According to new rules by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria, entities looking to offer cryptocurrency services in Nigeria or to Nigerians must obtain a so-called virtual asset service provider license. It stands to reason that such a license would make a cryptocurrency exchange legal in Nigeria. 

Q: How to Buy Crypto in Nigeria with Debit Card? 
A: You can buy crypto in Nigeria with debit or credit card on centralized exchanges such as Binance and Luno or p2p marketplaces such as Remitano and Bitpapa.

Q: How to Buy and Sell Crypto in Nigeria? 
A: For a peer-to-peer marketplace, you would need to create an account, find a seller (buyer), then open a trade to exchange crypto for Naira.

Q: Where to Buy Crypto in Nigeria?
A: You can buy crypto on a centralized exchange or a p2p marketplace of your choice. Alternatively, you can use a payment system which offers an option to buy crypto with Naira.