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Rabat – Morocco’s financial authorities are urging citizens to comply with regulations relating to trading with cryptocurrencies.
In a press statement reported by Morocco’s press agency (MAP), Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib, said that despite repeated warnings and clarifications on the risks associated with holding and trading in cryptocurrencies, data suggest that digital assets remain highly popular.
Given its highly-volatile nature and lack of consumer protection policies, cryptocurrencies trading poses a significant risk for Moroccan users, the central bank said in a joint statement with Morocco’s Capital Market Authority and the Foreign Exchange Office.
In addition to being highly volatile, cryptocurrencies are equally notoriously associated with criminal activities, including money laundering, the statement indicates.
Despite the nationwide ban on cryptocurrency trading and ownership, 2.4% of Morocco’s population own and trade in cryptocurrency, the highest rate in North Africa.
In 2021, trading in cryptocurrencies in Morocco reached a volume of $6 million, the fourth largest trading volume in Africa behind Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya.
Last month, Morocco’s central bank governor, Abdellatif Jouahiri, said that the country is deliberating with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) to establish a common regulatory framework governing cryptocurrencies.
While explicitly saying that cryptocurrencies represent the future, Jouahiri also pointed out the many risks associated with adopting digital currencies.
Although Morocco’s central bank does not oppose adopting cryptocurrencies, it maintains that establishing a legal framework will precede any move to adopt digital currencies.
