Nigerian Telcos Have Blocked Nigerians access to all crypto exchange websites

[Fivestar4everMVP]

A very sad event for the Nigerian crypto community as today, majorly every single crypto currency exchange website has been blocked by the Nigeria government through the Nigerian telecommunications providers.

There is no news about this move anywhere, none from either the government nor the Telcos, they silently did it.

To confirm this...
If you are a Nigerian, try visiting any crypto currency website.
If you are not a Nigerian, may be set your VPN to Nigeria and try accessing any crypto currency website, you will see something like in the below shot



Though crypto currency exchange apps are still working, but am afraid, they might as well be coming for the apps


Time to turn to VPN, and if you are visiting Nigeria, remember to have your VPN turned on 😀👍.

[Charles-Tim]

Did you think before that only Binanace website was banned?

I have noticed that not only Binanace website you will not be able to access, you can not also access other sites like Bybit, OKX, HTX and others.

I have noticed this before 7th of March since many days ago after Binance website was banned. Other exchanges websites were also banned.

[Wiwo]

Did you think before that only Binanace website was banned?

I have noticed that not only Binanace website you will not be able to access, you can not also access other sites like Bybit, OKX, HTX and others.

I have noticed this before 7th of March since many days ago after the Binance website was banned. Other exchange websites were also banned.

Charles you are right,  this blockage was part of the first order given by the government and it was immediately carried out, For like two weeks or a week now,  I have tried to use all the cryptocurrency exchange websites and none is working currently,  and I know it may remain so for as long as possible.

The government is taking every measure to climb down on in registered exchanges,  and the bad side is that the money the government places on exchange licenses is huge and almost impossible for individuals or institutions to meet up with anyways we always have our way around and we pray that all this end in our favour on the long run.

[Su-asa]

A very sad event for the Nigerian crypto community as today, majorly every single crypto currency exchange website has been blocked by the Nigeria government through the Nigerian telecommunications providers.

There is no news about this move anywhere, none from either the government nor the Telcos, they silently did it.

To confirm this...
If you are a Nigerian, try visiting any crypto currency website.
If you are not a Nigerian, may be set your VPN to Nigeria and try accessing any crypto currency website, you will see something like in the below shot

Though crypto currency exchange apps are still working, but am afraid, they might as well be coming for the apps


Time to turn to VPN, and if you are visiting Nigeria, remember to have your VPN turned on 😀👍.

IMO, Government want to ban anything that has to do with crypto currencies, first of all the CBN lifted the banned from crypto currency and now they are manipulating the Bitcoiners in Nigeria, my question is what is the essence of lifting the ban on crypto currency the first place. However this tells me that they just wanted to use the opportunity to get the identities of Nigeria Bitcoiners in naija.
On this situation, there is no other way to use exchanges without making use of VPN, there is always another solution in anything concerning crypto currencies.

[Barikui1]

It's very sad and regrettable act by the Nigerian government to take such a hostile policy toward cryptocurrency, Because cryptocurrency is a major source of income in the life of most youth in the country since they aren't providing any job opportunities, I just believe that no matter what they does, they can't shut us down, for us not to and use cryptocurrency as a source of income, because technology is a bitch, they actually don't know what we can do technologically, we will fine our way around it.

Instead of them working to strengthen the economy so that our naira can appreciate in value, they are putting the blame on cryptocurrency and forex, that it's because of them the naira is loosing value, this is the most incompetent set of politicians in charge of affairs I have ever experienced as a Nigerian.

[Fivestar4everMVP]

Did you think before that only Binanace website was banned?

I have noticed that not only Binanace website you will not be able to access, you can not also access other sites like Bybit, OKX, HTX and others.

I have noticed this before 7th of March since many days ago after Binance website was banned. Other exchanges websites were also banned.

Well, I honestly did not notice, because I accessed kucoin and mexc website as present as a day before yesterday, thats on the 6th of March, I bought some memecoins on this exchanges and transfered to my private wallet using my laptop, as my phone battery was down at that time..

I only discovered that both sites, and the rest (aside from Binance) have been blocked just a few hours ago after a channel I am subscribed to on WhatsApp posted the updated today, as you can see in the screenshot below.

(the part that is circled in red)

[Igebotz]

So, what are the next steps? Come for the apps, too. Or start prosecuting citizens who use cryptocurrency apps or censoring crypto-related forums? Every new CBN Governor consistently performs worse than their predecessors. Nigeria does not even have the highest trading or peer-to-peer volume on these exchanges, and I have never seen a country blame their currency depreciation on these exchanges.  There are various ways to strengthen the local currency, and blocking cryptocurrency exchanges is not one of them.

The Naira has been falling against the dollar even before Bitcoin or Binance was launched.

[Wiwo]

IMO, Government want to ban anything that has to do with crypto currencies, first of all the CBN lifted the banned from crypto currency and now they are manipulating the Bitcoiners in Nigeria, my question is what is the essence of lifting the ban on crypto currency the first place. However this tells me that they just wanted to use the opportunity to get the identities of Nigeria Bitcoiners in naija.
On this situation, there is no other way to use exchanges without making use of VPN, there is always another solution in anything concerning crypto currencies.

First the government have a game plan and that is why their lifted the ban on cryptocurrencies recently,  and if everything work out for the,  government may approve direct bank cryptocurrency transactions,  which in that way it will give the access to tax crypto users in Nigeria,  although this may work to so a certain level,  but won't solve the problem of revenue linkage in Nigeria.

The big question is, what are the ratio of control and accuracy in the decision to end Nigerians access to cryptocurrency exchanges,  because just like when the government ban twitter,  Nigerians we're still able to use the platform through other means like VPN or so.

This will not be different from that situation also,  and if care is not taken,  the outcome of this authocratic move will bring more negative impact on the currency and inflation in the country,  because many cryptocurrencies related businesses will relocate to other friendly environment.

[stompix]

Time to turn to VPN, and if you are visiting Nigeria, remember to have your VPN turned on 😀👍.

Or, or...hear me out:

Abstract. A purely peer-to-peer version of electronic cash would allow online
payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a
financial institution.

This move has shown perfectly why CEX shouldn't be part of a decentralized world.

Also, I wonder how many will get in trouble when visiting their exchange with a different IP, this can turn into a wave of abuse from some, they will ask that you connect form the same location as your last deposit or you can kiss your money goodbye! I would get every single penny out of an exchange I can access only though a VPN and is blocked in my country, they could simply say that what you're doing is breaking the law as per their Toss and take eveything you have, who are you going to complain to? Local police? 

[Wiwo]

This move has shown perfectly why CEX shouldn't be part of a decentralized world.

Also, I wonder how many will get in trouble when visiting their exchange with a different IP, this can turn into a wave of abuse from some, they will ask that you connect from the same location as your last deposit or you can kiss your money goodbye! I would get every single penny out of an exchange I can access only through a VPN and is blocked in my country, they could simply say that what you're doing is breaking the law as per their Toss and take everything you have, who are you going to complain to? Local police?  

Yeah, this is a crazy situation but an absolute pointer to depart from overreliance on CEX,  but is sad the approach is harsh on the citizens who may lack the knowledge of decentralization.

Most crypto users in Nigeria are majorly traders,  who buy and sell coins,  the set of cryptocurrency users in Nigeria make up for the large total volume coming from the side, and only a few have the basic knowledge such as how best to secure your coins in a fully decentralized manner.

This is not the first time an ugly event and pronunciation like this will happened,  and each time the government got the approach wrong.

[Potato Chips]

Jeez, things have escalated from the last time I've read about this.

So Nigeria has apparently invited two binance executives only to intercept them and seize their passports.

Nigeria has detained two executives of the Binance crypto exchange after they flew into the country, media outlets reported.

The two were detained by the country's Office of the National Security Adviser and their passports seized, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The two had been invited by Nigeria to meet officials, and were intercepted when they landed on the grounds that Binance had been operating in the country illegally, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

The executives have not been charged, but could face allegations of currency manipulation, tax evasion and illegal operations, Bloomberg reported.

I could understand the other two but they're barking up the wrong tree with "allegations of currency manipulation"-- their local currency, i assume- because in binance's "p2p market", users set the price.

and BTW, binance is also discountinuing Naira which I think op should add in the first post.

Binance plans to discontinue its Nigerian Naira (NGN) services following increased scrutiny from the country’s regulators.

The crypto exchange will delist any existing NGN pairs by Thursday, and on Friday any remaining NGN balances in a user account will be converted to USDT.

“Users are encouraged to withdraw NGN, trade their NGN assets or convert NGN into crypto prior to the discontinuation of these NGN services,” a company blog post said on Tuesday.

Honestly, with how messy things are, I would withdraw my money on binance if I was from Nigeria and just come back again when the skies are clear.

[Igebotz]

I could understand the other two but they're barking up the wrong tree with "allegations of currency manipulation"-- their local currency, i assume- because in binance's "p2p market", users set the price.

and BTW, binance is also discountinuing Naira which I think op should add in the first post.

The previous administration blamed AbokiFX for Naira manipulation, had it blocked. The new administration has learned nothing from the previous administration, and is now mindlessly attacking Binance, accusing them of Naira manipulations. Naira depreciation is an internal issue, not related to crypto or p2p, as the administration claimed.

They're also going after local currency exchangers.

[tabas]

I guess it is time for you guys to utilize whatever access is given to you by telcos, do you still happen to access decentralized exchanges? Like uniswap, sushiswap, etc?

Most crypto users in Nigeria are majorly traders,  who buy and sell coins,  the set of cryptocurrency users in Nigeria make up for the large total volume coming from the side, and only a few have the basic knowledge such as how best to secure your coins in a fully decentralized manner.

This is not the first time an ugly event and pronunciation like this will happened,  and each time the government got the approach wrong.

They were even recorded as one of the fastest growing country in terms P2P transactions in the crypto market and yet the government did this. 

Honestly, with how messy things are, I would withdraw my money on binance if I was from Nigeria and just come back again when the skies are clear.

I would also do that while they can still access it through VPN. The government is targeting them and I think that there's a reason why they're pulling over this scene. This could have something to do with the $3B settlement of Binance US and about being unregistered but operating in their locality and they also want to have that chunk for being not locally registered in Nigeria.

[alani123]

Is this a DNS level ban? Because if so then it's really easy to get over it and most people experienced with crypto will to so very fast I assume. It's time to spread the word I guess. If s governments currency is so bad even the volatile crypto seems like a better option to the wider population for everyday use, then the government should focus on being less corrupt other than spending so much man hours trying to ban websites.

[Darker45]

This was already the news last month, right? The decision to block centralized exchanges was already issued in February. It might not have been implemented right away. Nigerian users here were saying all things are good despite the decision. But now it seems the implementation has finally taken place.

I'm afraid the use of VPN will be a short respite as centralized exchanges might stop serving Nigerian citizens to avoid legal troubles. If Nigeria is added to these exchanges' list of banned countries, VPN use will become pointless. The time might be right to stay away from exchanges blacklisted by the government.

[Yamane_Keto]

In such cases, your use of a VPN will be easy to detect, especially if it is not a dedicated IP VPN. after accessing exchange via VPN, contact the support team and tell them the story,  if there is no problem, log in and withdraw.
If you have a large balance, it is better to search for a dedicated IP VPN provider for a country that is not one of the banned countries, and log in to your account. Here, some services in your account may be temporarily restricted due to the change in IP, but you will definitely be able to withdraw.

If CEX decides to ban your country, there is usually a 30-day access to withdraw funds.

[Wiwo]

Is this a DNS level ban? Because if so then it's really easy to get over it and most people experienced with crypto will to so very fast I assume. It's time to spread the word I guess. If s government's currency is so bad even the volatile crypto seems like a better option to the wider population for everyday use, then the government should focus on being less corrupt other than spending so manyman-hourss trying to ban websites.

I think at this point the ban is just a DNS level ban as only the exchange websites are banned,  but their apps are still working,  and also aside from binance whose p2p and other naira services have been affected,  other exchanges are still serving Nigerians at the moment and everything seems to be fine for now,  but we can tell what will happen in the coming week as the war against exchanges are being intensified so for sure we need to prepare for rainy days and entirely stay away from CEX for now for the safety of our investments.

[Asiska02]

I'm afraid the use of VPN will be a short respite as centralized exchanges might stop serving Nigerian citizens to avoid legal troubles. If Nigeria is added to these exchanges' list of banned countries, VPN use will become pointless. The time might be right to stay away from exchanges blacklisted by the government.

VPN use will become pointless since Binance already have the KYC of all Nigerians registered on their platform, they can easily blacklist any account that has a Nigerian KYC document submitted to them. VPN is just a short term solution if Telcos only blocked access to those sites or applications, but when Binance decides to blacklist Nigerians from accessing their platforms, VPN won’t be a solution to that anymore because of the KYC already done by the Nigerians on their platform.

Since the news broke out, Binance have only announced to all Nigerian users on their platforms that they’ll delist the USDT/NGN pairs and all other pairs with NGN. Also, the p2p avenue on the platform was disabled for all Nigerians. We don’t hope for more legal action on Binance from Nigerian government or any action from Binance on Nigerians using their platforms. A lot of Nigerian youths are self-employed through that means and getting a means of surviving in the country.

[alani123]

I think at this point the ban is just a DNS level ban as only the exchange websites are banned,  but their apps are still working,  and also aside from binance whose p2p and other naira services have been affected,  other exchanges are still serving Nigerians at the moment and everything seems to be fine for now,  but we can tell what will happen in the coming week as the war against exchanges are being intensified so for sure we need to prepare for rainy days and entirely stay away from CEX for now for the safety of our investments.

Over here in Greece there's also a very expansive list of online casinos being blocked, which includes most crypto casinos too. But it can be bypassed by simply changing the DNS on your computer. So I would assume most crypto users are already educated enough in computers to know how to bypass these silly blocks.

But as of exchanges being banned... This could make things much harder. Lots of people in Europe nearly abandoned crypto when they lost the convenience of sending a simple bank transfer to get crypto from binance. If at least Nigeria could replace foreign exchanges with local regulated ones that have banking integration it might be a win win. But it's something that could take time. I hope these changes don't adversely effect the country's crypto users at least.

[Igebotz]

Over here in Greece there's also a very expansive list of online casinos being blocked, which includes most crypto casinos too. But it can be bypassed by simply changing the DNS on your computer. So I would assume most crypto users are already educated enough in computers to know how to bypass these silly blocks.

Not every knows about the DNS settings and some Nigerians might need it with the way things are moving.... If you have any good resources you can drop it.