Ghana legalises trading in virtual assets

Trading in virtual assets such as crypto currency in the country has become legal following the passage of Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) Bill into law by Parliament.

A statement issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the VASPs in Accra on Monday and copied to the Ghanaian Times, said the move was to promote an efficient Securities market to promote investors.

It said SEC is mandated to regulate and promote the growth and development of an efficient, fair and transparent securities market in which investors, and the integrity of the market are protected.

The statement said law outlines the legal and regulatory framework for regulating Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers in Ghana.

The statement said the the relevant regulatory authorities are the Bank of Ghana, the Securities and Exchange Commission and any other regulatory body prescribed by the Minister of Finance.

“All persons and entities conducting virtual asset activities will need to be licensed or officially registered by the SEC or the Bank of Ghana, based on their activity,” the statement said.

It said the SEC and the Bank of Ghana will issue guidelines and other regulatory instruments to operationalise the Act.

The statement said for the avoidance of doubt, the SEC shall license and regulate the following Virtual Asset Services under the Act.

They are the Virtual Asset Exchanges
Virtual Asset Trading Platforms
Virtual Asset Issuance
Virtual Asset Tokenization
Virtual Asset Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)
Virtual Asset Managers
Virtual Asset Investment Adviso.

The others Virtual Asset Brokerage,
Virtual Asset Advocacy (On Securities),
Virtual Asset Mining and Validation (On Securities), and Virtual Asset Sandbox (On Securities).

The SEC assures the general and investing public of its continued diligence and unwavering commitment to fostering a safe, efficient, fair, and transparent virtual asset ecosystem in which investors are protected, and market integrity is upheld.

It said the statement is issued pursuant to sections 3 and 208(c) of the Securities Industry Act, 2016 (Act 929), as amended.