Rwanda Central Bank Says Crypto Payments, Trading Remain Illegal

The National Bank of Rwanda has reiterated that crypto-asset payments and trading remain illegal under the country’s current regulatory framework.

Cointelegraph reported on May 6 that the central bank, through its official channels, said crypto assets cannot be used for payments, exchanged into Rwandan francs or traded on a peer-to-peer basis. It also said virtual assets pose significant financial risks and that investors would not be protected against losses.

The statement followed an announcement by crypto exchange Bybit on May 4 that it would support crypto trading in Rwandan francs on its P2P platform.

In a separate notice, the central bank stressed that the Rwandan franc is the country’s only legal tender. Financial institutions licensed by the central bank are barred from converting fiat currency into crypto assets or exchanging crypto assets back into fiat currency.

Rwanda is also pursuing a central bank digital currency as part of efforts to strengthen monetary sovereignty. Its proposed e-Franc is currently in the technology validation stage and could later be expanded into a pilot program.

Authorities are also preparing a regulatory framework for virtual assets. In March, the Capital Market Authority released a draft rulebook for virtual-asset service providers. The proposal would ban the use of legal tender for virtual assets and restrict mining, mixer services and the issuance of tokens pegged to the Rwandan franc.

The draft also includes a licensing-based supervisory framework that would allow qualified operators to operate if they meet certain requirements.

Separately, Chainalysis data show Rwanda’s crypto adoption was low in 2024 and 2025 compared with other major African countries.