BCEAO Forms Committee to Regulate Cryptoassets in West African Monetary Union
The Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) is taking steps to regulate cryptoassets in the region, establishing a multidisciplinary committee called C-CRYPTO. The committee will draft a specific regulation for the West African Monetary Union (UMOA), which currently has no official status or legal tender status for cryptoassets.
According to Chainalysis, Sub-Saharan Africa received over $205 billion in cryptoasset-related value on-chain between July 2024 and June 2025, representing growth of roughly 52% year-on-year. However, the UMOA's precise share in these flows is not isolated.
The BCEAO has reaffirmed its issuance monopoly while observing the market's evolution, relying on the UMOA Treaty and its own Statutes to refuse to treat cryptoassets as money even when some users begin using them as a store of value or settlement instrument.