Building the Gold Standard for Nigeria’s Digital Future.
ABUJA, Nigeria — The Virtual Asset Service Providers Association (VASPA) is proud to announce that the official window for industry feedback and stakeholder consultation for Project Green-White-Green has officially closed.
A Big Thank You
To the innovators, advocates, and players who shared their perspectives: Thank you. Your contributions are ensuring that this project isn’t just an initiative for the constructive re-alignment of policy and regulations, but also a catalyst for trust and growth in Nigeria’s emerging virtual asset industry.
We extend our deepest gratitude to the local operators, global innovators, legal experts, financial institutions, and industry leaders who participated. Whether you are a homegrown startup or a foreign VASP looking to expand into the Nigerian market, your feedback will be instrumental in refining a roadmap that is both commercially viable and regulatorily robust.
Demonstrating Our Commitment
Your submissions have touched on every pillar of the project—from the “Circuit Breaker” volatility mechanisms to the Tiered Licensing framework. By engaging in this process, you are helping us find the clarity to move away from the “regulatory paradox” of the past toward a future of clarity.
Meaningfully Contributing to Nigeria’s GDP
Project Green-White-Green applies to all VASPs—both local Nigerian entities and foreign entities—operating or intending to operate within the Nigeria virtual asset industry. By promoting the need for realignment, we are pushing for lowering the barriers to entry and the replacement of “regulation by enforcement” with a clear, predictable,and transparent path to market.
By realigning the industry’s growth, models, and aspirations with national goals, we are promoting a more accountable, connected, and transparent virtual asset industry that will contribute to national growth and development without compromising market integrity, efficiency, and national sovereignty. We are ensuring that every participant is a “Green-White-Green” actor—dedicated to transparency, AML/CFT compliance, and the protection of Nigerian consumers.
When operators meet the standards of integrity (White), innovation (Green), and prosperity (Green), the industry will be able to meaningfully support Nigeria’s GDP and the projected $1 Trillion economy without compromising national security.
Industry Buy-In and Support
While the window for industry feedback was opened, we received feedback from various sections of the virtual assets industry. Below, we share a few words from some of the platforms and institutions that provided us detailed responses and recommendations on how best Nigeria’s largely stunted virtual asset industry can move from formalization to full access towards unlocking a thriving industry that is globally competitive in all dimensions, not merely ticking boxes.
Crypto-to-Fiat Conversion Platform
“Project Green-White-Green represents a constructive shift in tone—from adversarial regulation to collaborative state-building. Nigeria does not lack innovation. It lacks coordinated integration. If implemented with operational precision, proportional capital structuring, and transparent governance, this framework could reposition Nigeria as Africa’s most coherent digital asset jurisdiction. We remain committed to participating in any pilot programs, technical consultations, or working groups required to bring this initiative to life.” – A leading VASP enabling easy and fast crypto-to-fiat conversion in emerging markets
Stablecoin Gateway to Global Finance
“We commend VASPA for the initiative and the timing of this roadmap. The shift toward a formalized market structure and the proposed integration with NAFEM are significant developments that warrant careful consideration.”- a leading VASP providing a gateway to faster, more affordable, and flexible finance globally through a stablecoin solution
An Academic & Research Institution
“Project Green White Green initiative is a well thought-out, comprehensive intervention project that holds a lot of potential to transform and leapfrog Nigeria’s virtual assets sector. The pillars are well captured, and the strategies are intentionally designed to accelerate Nigeria’s digital economy.”- an international center for emerging technologies of a federal university in Nigeria
A Network of Stablecoin Operators and Merchants
“The proposals outlined in the whitepaper represent a constructive effort to move the digital asset ecosystem in Nigeria from a period of regulatory uncertainty toward a more structured and coordinated framework. Regulatory clarity, fiscal integration, market integrity mechanisms, and inter-agency coordination will all play a crucial role in ensuring that stablecoin businesses can grow responsibly while maintaining financial stability and regulatory confidence.”- a leading network fostering collaboration, innovation, and growth of stablecoin ecosystems across Africa
Alignment between Project Green-White-Green and Nigeria’s VARA Framework
VASPA’s Project Green-White-Green and Nigeria’s newly introduced Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) share a core vision of formalizing the country’s digital asset sector to drive national prosperity. Both initiatives are specifically designed to align with the Federal Government’s goal of achieving a $1 trillion economy by 2030 by transitioning Nigeria from a “regulation by enforcement” era to a structured, innovation-friendly environment. They seek to move the crypto industry out of the shadow economy and into a regulated framework that grants legitimacy to operators, provides them with essential banking access, and positions Nigeria as a global leader in digital asset governance.
Structurally, both frameworks emphasize a collaborative and multi-agency approach to oversight rather than any single, isolated regulator or regulators working in silos. Project Green-White-Green serves as an industry-led roadmap that advocates for the same “distributed supervision” model that the official VARA framework implements—integrating the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). While this “one-stop shop” is named the Virtual Asset Regulatory Unit (VARU) in the draft Project Green White Green White Paper, it is called the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) in the VARA White paper.
Also, both Project Green-White-Green and the VARA White Paper prioritize fiscal responsibility and national security; they each propose technical mechanisms for real-time tax remittance and enhanced traceability to prevent illicit financial flows, ensuring that the digital asset ecosystem contributes significantly to the Federation Account while protecting the country’s financial integrity.
What Next?
Accountability is at the heart of what we do. Having received your feedback, here is our roadmap for the coming weeks:
- Review & Synthesis: The Project Management Office (PMO) is analyzing all submissions to refine the project’s operational guidelines. This is to ensure that the frameworks and protocols proposed in the White Paper remain tools for enablement rather than bottlenecks.
- The “Feedback We Got” Report: Within the next 14 days, we will publish a summary of the feedback themes received, ensuring full transparency in how your input is shaping the project.
- Publish the White Paper: Update the Project Green-White-Green White Paper after aggregating, articulating, and aligning industry feedback. Then, we circulate copies publicly, including to relevant agencies in the public sector, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A Call to the Industry
While this specific consultation window has closed, our door remains open. Project Green-White-Green is a living initiative designed to foster a safe, thriving, and globally competitive digital asset sector in Nigeria. We encourage all industry players and stakeholders to stay engaged, as we move into the public sector engagement phase.
As we prepare to launch what we believe will be one of the most coordinated public-private fintech efforts in Nigeria’s history, the journey has just begun. Project Green-White-Green—one of a number of country-specific projects VASPA is initiating to rebuild trust and confidence in Africa’s emerging virtual asset industry—is our collective opportunity to show the world that Nigeria’s digital asset industry is realigning, and becoming truly ready for the global stage.
About VASPA
The Virtual Asset Service Providers Association (VASPA), founded in September 2024 and headquartered in Nigeria, is the premier Africa-focused advocacy group for the virtual asset industry. Our mission is to foster innovation, harmonize regulation, and build a safe and thriving virtual asset ecosystem across the African continent. For more information about us, please visit our website, www.vaspa.org.
Join Us
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.
Contact the PMO:
- Office: Project Management Office (PMO), Project Green-White-Green
- Organization: Virtual Assets Service Providers Association (VASPA)
- Email: projectgwg@vaspa.org
- Website: www.vaspa.org
