ABUJA, NIGERIA—July 5, 2026—The Virtual Asset Service Providers Association (VASPA) has formally appointed Buki Ogunsakin, a member of its Board of Trustees (BoT) and Principal at BBO Solicitors, as the inaugural Chair of the newly launched Passporting Working Group.
The appointment represents another bold leadership deployment by the pan-African body to establish unified, cross-border operational structures and follows VASPA’s recent announcement of the inauguration of new committees and working groups last month.
The Mandate: Eradicating Regulatory Fragmentation Across Africa
The Passporting Working Group represents one of VASPA’s core technical “engine rooms.” Its singular mandate is to develop and champion a unified licensing framework where a single virtual asset service provider (VASP) license obtained in one African jurisdiction is recognized across other African jurisdictions.
By leveraging bilateral and multilateral frameworks and deep mutual cooperation, the group aims to eliminate the highly restrictive, capital-draining process of requiring startups to secure redundant localized licenses for every individual country they expand into. This initiative directly aligns with the broader economic integration goals of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), transforming Africa into a friction-free zone for digital financial infrastructure.
Perspective from the Chair
Buki Ogunsakin, an internationally recognized emerging tech lawyer and digital asset policy expert, emphasized that passporting is the missing puzzle piece for scaling Africa’s digital economy sustainably:
“Africa’s virtual asset sector cannot achieve its true potential if we remain siloed within strict regulatory islands. Our primary goal in the Passporting Working Group is to replace fragmentation with mutual recognition. By leveraging strategic bilateral and multilateral frameworks, we are building a compliance passport that allows safe, vetted innovation to travel freely across borders.
“As a member of the Board of Trustees, my duty is always to protect the long-term vision and integrity of VASPA. However, taking the wheel of this technical engine room allows me to actively build the cross-border rails our ecosystem needs. We aren’t just drafting theoretical policy papers; we are creating the practical compliance standards that will enable an operator licensed in Lagos or Accra to scale seamlessly into Nairobi, Johannesburg, and beyond through absolute mutual cooperation.”
Strategic Integration & Pan-African Alignment
As Chair, Ogunsakin will immediately steer the group’s technical integration with ongoing regional advocacy campaigns, working in parallel with the newly formed Ecosystem Growth & Advocacy Committee and national partner bodies. The working group’s immediate task will be delivering a cross-border passporting whitepaper and standard operating framework to be tabled before regional financial intelligence units and securities commissions later this quarter.
The VASPA Committee & Working Group Enrollment Form is available for completion by interested persons, but are required to also be registered members of the association.
About VASPA:
The Virtual Asset Service Providers Association (VASPA) is a Pan-African industry body registered as an Incorporated Trustee with the Corporate Affairs Commission in Nigeria (CAC IT: 79069970) where it is headquartered. VASPA comprises individual, corporate, and institutional members from across Africa. For more information about us, please visit our website, www.vaspa.org. To become a Patron or Partner of VASPA, visit our Membership page: https://vaspa.org/become-a-member/. Individual and corporate members are also welcomed.
