Liberia

The regulatory status of cryptocurrency in Liberia is best characterized as 'Allowed-UnRegulated'. While there is no comprehensive prudential framework governing the operations of cryptocurrency exchanges (such as capital requirements or consumer protection rules), the asset class is legally recognized and defined within the country's primary financial crime legislation. The Anti-Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, Preventive Measures and Proceeds of Crime Act of 2021 explicitly includes 'Virtual Assets' and 'Virtual Asset Service Providers' (VASPs) in its definitions, categorizing VASPs as reporting entities subject to the oversight of the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA).

This legal recognition contrasts with the stance of the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL), which has historically taken a cautious and defensive approach. In May 2021, the CBL issued a strong warning against a specific local project, 'The Abundance Community Coin,' labeling it an illegal financial institution because it lacked a license. This created a de facto 'Gray-Zone' for potential local operators, as the CBL asserted that a license was required for financial business but provided no clear pathway to obtain one for crypto specifically. However, the subsequent passage of the AML Act in late 2021 and the Tax Amendment Act in 2024 suggests a shift from potential prohibition toward regulation and taxation.

The most significant recent development is the Tax Amendment Act of December 2024, which amends the Liberia Consolidated Revenue Code. The Act includes provisions for the implementation of the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), aligning Liberia with international tax transparency standards. This move implicitly confirms the legality of holding and trading crypto assets, as the government establishes mechanisms to track and tax them. Consequently, individual retail trading is permitted, but the ecosystem lacks the safety of a regulated market structure.

Practically, this means Liberian residents can freely buy and sell cryptocurrencies using international platforms or Peer-to-Peer (P2P) methods. However, due to the lack of CBL-licensed local on-ramps, integration with the local banking system remains frictionless only for P2P transactions. The regulatory environment is currently split between the FIA's active AML monitoring requirements and the CBL's passive lack of a prudential licensing regime, leaving the sector legally recognized but operationally unsupervised.