The demand for Bitcoin (BTC) in Nigeria has soared as the fiat notes are set to be invalidated. This rise in demand is causing BTC to be traded at a premium of up to 163.77% in Nigeria.

At the time of writing, peer-to-peer traders are selling BTC at prices as high as $62.499 on LocalBitcoins. That’s 163.77% above the current BTC price of $23,694.

BTC is trading at an average price of over $38,000, meaning Nigerians have to pay a minimum of 60% premium amid the soaring demand, according to LocalBitcoins.

On Paxful, BTC trades between $28,000 and $39,300 in the country — signifying premiums of 18.1% to 65.8%.

In February 2021, when the Nigerian central bank prohibited financial institutions from providing services to crypto exchanges, the BTC premium had risen to around 36%.

(By Monika Ghosh)