Vice President of IMANI Africa, Bright Simons, has expressed worry over what he describes as a forceful exit of Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, from Nigeria.
In a recent announcement, Binance has revealed its decision to halt all Nigerian Naira (NGN) services.
The move comes as part of the platform’s ongoing efforts to streamline its operations and adapt to evolving market dynamics.
Reacting to the news, Bright Simons noted that the exit stemmed from the Nigerian government blaming the country currency depreciation on the activities of Binance.
He asserts that Binance’s exit will have a huge impact on the many Nigerian youth who have embraced the cryptocurrency.
Govt of Nigeria forces out world’s largest crypto broker, after blaming it for massive depreciation of the national currency. Many young Nigerians have enthusiastically embraced crypto as a financial safe haven.
Here’s a breakdown of the key details and implications for users:
Timeline and Actions:
- Deposits and Withdrawals: Binance ceased supporting NGN deposits after 2024-03-05 14:00 (UTC). Withdrawals of NGN will no longer be supported after 2024-03-08 06:00 (UTC).
- Conversion of Remaining Balances: From 2024-03-08 08:00 (UTC), any remaining NGN balances in users’ Binance accounts will be automatically converted to USDT (Tether) at a ratio of 1 USDT = 1,515.13 NGN. This conversion rate is based on the average closing price of the USDT/NGN trading pair on Binance Spot over the last seven days.
- Spot Trading: All existing NGN spot trading pairs, such as BTC/NGN and USDT/NGN, will be delisted at 2024-03-07 03:00 (UTC). Users with open spot orders related to these pairs will see them automatically closed.
- Binance Convert: NGN and all corresponding pairs will be delisted from Binance Convert at 2024-03-07 02:00 (UTC).
- Binance P2P: Binance P2P had already delisted all NGN trading pairs at 2024-02-28 15:00 (UTC).
- Binance Auto-Invest and Binance Pay: NGN will also be removed from Binance Auto-Invest and Binance Pay at 2024-03-06 03:00 (UTC).
User Recommendations:
Users are encouraged to take the following actions before the specified deadlines:
- Withdraw NGN balances or convert them into crypto assets before the discontinuation of NGN services.
- Ensure they have not selected “Hide Small Balances” in all of their wallets to view their assets after trading ceases.
- Consider removing any existing auto-invest plans involving NGN to prevent disruptions in recurring cycles.
- Adjust payment methods if using Binance Pay, as NGN will no longer be supported.