Is Crypto Legal In Burkina Faso?

Burkina Faso has not issued any official statement or legislation regarding the legal status of cryptocurrencies at the national level. As a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), Burkina Faso falls under the jurisdiction of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), which oversees monetary policy for eight countries including Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo (1). While cryptocurrencies are not explicitly banned, they operate in a regulatory gray area without specific legal frameworks governing their use (1).

The BCEAO has taken a cautious stance on cryptocurrencies, with former Governor Tiemoko Meyliet Koné stating that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are not welcome in the WAEMU region. According to the central bank's position, cryptocurrencies cannot be controlled and lack the necessary counterpart and value guarantee required of legitimate currencies (1). The BCEAO emphasized that since no authority is accountable for these digital assets, they cannot permit their circulation within the monetary union, despite ongoing conversations with other central banks yielding no changes to this position (1).

"The governor of the BCEAO, the West African CFA Franc zone's central bank, said Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are not welcome in WAEMU. A currency needs a counterpart and a value guarantee, according to Tiemoko Meyliet Koné."

Despite the BCEAO's restrictive stance, the central bank has been developing digital financial infrastructure including the Interoperable Instant Payment System Platform and the e-CFA, a central bank digital currency. The BCEAO authorizes electronic money issuance through banking and non-banking models, with significant progress made since adopting its e-money regulatory framework in 2006 and updating it in May 2015 (2). However, these initiatives focus on centralized digital currencies rather than decentralized cryptocurrencies, leaving Bitcoin and similar assets without formal regulatory approval or recognition in Burkina Faso (2).

Source:
https://chaintum.io/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Blockchain-and-Crypto-Regulations-in-BCEAO-1.pdf
https://www.afi-global.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/bceaoevolution.pdf

Last updated: 18-10-2025 Disclaimer: This article does not provide legal advice. If you need legal advice, please contact an attorney directly.