For nearly a decade, Morocco maintained one of the stricter stances on cryptocurrency in the Arab world, but millions of Moroccans quietly built an underground crypto economy that regulators could no longer ignore.
In November 2017, Morocco’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, Bank Al-Maghrib and the Office des Changes issued a joint statement declaring cryptocurrency transactions illegal.
Authorities warned that using bitcoin or other virtual currencies violated Morocco’s foreign exchange rules, left users without legal protection and exposed them to fraud, money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
Moroccans found trading in digital assets faced penalties under exchange regulations, and Morocco became one of the few in the region to impose an outright ban.
The ban was imposed to protect monetary sovereignty. Bank Al-Maghrib saw crypto as a backdoor for citizens to move money out of the country, bypassing official banking channels, dodging currency controls and threatening national reserves.
But Moroccans didn’t stop using cyptocurrencies despite the ban. According to the Chainalysis 2022 Global Crypto Adoption Index, Morocco ranked 14th worldwide for grassroots adoption. and underground use kept pace with official prohibition.
By 2024, an estimated 6 million Moroccans, roughly 16% of the population, owned or used cryptocurrency, representing 60% growth over five years.
Platforms like Binance, Kraken and peer-to-peer exchanges became the de facto marketplace for millions operating in a legal gray zone.
In November 2024, Bank Al-Maghrib Governor Abdellatif Jouahri announced the bank had prepared a draft law regulating cryptoassets, developed with support from the World Bank, and that it was currently in the adoption process.
Jouahri also disclosed the central bank was studying the potential launch of a digital dirham, a state-backed central bank digital currency.
The gap between lived reality and the law became increasingly difficult to ignore. In early 2025, Moroccan authorities launched an investigation into cryptocurrency-enabled property purchases, finding individuals used cryptocurrency to bypass regulations for foreign real estate transactions.
In late 2025, the Ministry of Economy and Finance published Bill 42.25, a draft law outlining a comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets and decentralized finance.
The legislation aims to protect investors, ensure market integrity, combat fraud and money laundering, foster financial innovation and safeguard financial stability.
The bill does not legalize cryptocurrency as a form of payment but treats crypto-assets as a separate category of financial assets to be managed only by authorized service providers operating within Morocco’s monetary rules.
The legalization is a must as Morocco’s crypto market is projected to reach $292.4 million in 2026, with annual growth forecast at 4.92% once the framework is enacted.
The country already ranked 24th globally in crypto adoption in 2025 and recorded the highest crypto transaction value in North Africa in 2023.
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