Rwanda’s central bank: “Virtual-asset payments are illegal” … warns despite Bybit support

The National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) has reiterated that payments and transactions involving virtual assets (cryptocurrencies) remain illegal.

According to Cointelegraph on the 6th (local time), NBR said via its official channels that “under the current regulatory framework, crypto-assets cannot be used for payments, exchanging into Rwandan francs (FRW), or P2P transactions.” It added that virtual assets “pose significant financial risks and offer no protection in the event of losses,” urging investors to exercise caution.

The warning follows a statement by virtual-asset exchange Bybit on the 4th that it would support virtual-asset trading in Rwandan francs on its P2P platform.

In a separate notice, NBR emphasized that the Rwandan franc is the only legal tender and that even central bank-licensed financial institutions are prohibited from converting legal tender into crypto-assets or exchanging crypto-assets back into legal tender.

Rwanda is also pursuing the introduction of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) to strengthen monetary sovereignty. The “e-franc” is currently in the technology validation stage and could later expand into a pilot program.

At the same time, authorities are putting in place a regulatory framework for virtual assets. In March, the Capital Market Authority released a draft regulatory framework for virtual-asset service providers; the bill prohibits the use of legal tender for virtual assets and includes restrictions on mining, mixer services, and the issuance of tokens linked to the Rwandan franc.

However, it is also reported to include a plan to allow operations only for operators that meet certain requirements under a license-based supervisory regime.

Meanwhile, Chainalysis data show that Rwanda’s level of virtual-asset adoption is low compared with major African countries for 2024–2025.