Cabo Verde

Cabo Verde occupies a 'Gray-Zone' status regarding retail cryptocurrency trading, characterized by a significant gap between its advanced legislative framework and the practical reality of its implementation. In June 2023, the National Assembly enacted Law No. 30/X/2023, a comprehensive statute designed to regulate Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) and digital banks. This law explicitly brings crypto-asset activities under the supervision of the Banco de Cabo Verde (BCV), mandating registration for exchanges, custodians, and transfer services. It also subjects these entities to strict Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) obligations, aligning the country with FATF recommendations.

Despite the legal clarity provided by the 2023 law, the operational licensing regime appears to be stalled or in a very early stage of development. As of late 2025, more than two years after the law's passage, there is no publicly available record of licensed VASPs operating in the country. The BCV launched a public consultation on the specific regulations for VASP registration in January 2024, indicating a delay in finalizing the practical mechanisms for market entry. This delay has resulted in a market that is legally 'open' but practically 'closed' to regulated domestic operators.

Evidence from the local fintech sector reinforces this assessment. In November 2025, founders of 'CaboPay', a local payment startup, stated in interviews that 'no one works directly with cryptocurrencies in the country' and called for a 'clearer legal framework'. This suggests that while the statute exists on paper, it has not yet fostered a regulated domestic market, and entrepreneurs still perceive regulatory barriers or ambiguity. Consequently, while retail trading is not criminalized, residents lack access to locally regulated platforms and must rely on international services, which operate outside the direct oversight of the BCV.

The Banco de Cabo Verde has previously issued warnings (e.g., in 2018) regarding the risks of virtual assets, emphasizing they are not legal tender and are not guaranteed by the state. While the 2023 law supersedes the notion of an unregulated 'Wild West', the absence of licensed entities triggers the 'Gray-Zone' classification criteria: a licensing regime is technically in force, but no licenses have been issued after more than 12 months, leaving the status of safe, regulated retail trading in limbo.