Nigeria’s VP Proclaims Blockchain And Crypto Will Challenge Current Finance

Yemi Osinbajo stands as Nigeria’s Vice President, and gave some interesting comments on Friday at an economic summit. In his statement, he gave a very positive outlook regarding cryptocurrencies, blockchains, and their future within the world’s financial system.

Only Good Things About Crypto

Osinbajo proclaimed that blockchain technology, and particularly cryptocurrencies, will inevitably challenge the entire traditional banking space, even the reserve banks, within the coming years. He warned that they will do so in ways that can’t even be imagined at this time, since it’s still a fledgling technology.

He gave this statement during the Bankers’ Committee Summit for the Central Bank of Nigeria, or CBN. He warned that the Nigerian financial system needs to be prepared for the inevitable impact cryptocurrencies will make, warning that it might be sooner than expected.

Another key point Osinbajo praised was the sheer scope of the crypto industry, giving special mention to the decentralized finance (DeFi) space. In fact, he warned that the space will challenge centralized financial institutions, citing its ability to create smart contracts. Smart contracts themselves, as he explained it, allows the creation of financial instruments.

Crypto Adoption Is Key Says Osinbajo

The entire speech of the Nigerian Vice President has been made available through his YouTube channel. The speech in question holds a number of key argument points besides cryptocurrencies, as well. It seems, however, that the emphasis was on crypto, as Osinbajo even sent out video clips via Twitter specifically highlighting his crypto comments.

Osinbajo explained that the entire point he was trying to make regarding all this was the ongoing, exciting developments the world is experiencing is mandating action.

In particular, he called for care and prudence regarding these new developments’ subsequent adoption within the mainstream.

Nigeria Not So Keen For Crypto

He warned that the actions taken in the future must be based on knowledge instead of fear. He warned that people need to position themselves in such a way as to prevent any sort of negative side effects while benefiting from these new developments. Another thing he warned against was the actions, primarily criminal actions, that can result from the adoption of these new technologies.

All of these actions seem to run in direct opposition to Nigeria’s overall government opinion regarding crypto. It was earlier in February when the country’s central bank outright banned banking interactions between banks and crypto exchanges. Bitcoin’s trading for an incredible premium within the country, and the governor of the CBN went as far as declaring cryptocurrencies to be illegitimate.