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    Is crypto legal in Botswana?

    Not legal advice. Below are the regulators’ own words, quoted from their official pages on the dates shown. Laws and rules change: check the regulator’s site before you open an account.

    Facts verified on October 28, 2026

    In Botswana, the Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA) licenses virtual asset service providers (VASPs) under the Virtual Assets Act, 2025, and publishes a list of the providers it has licensed on its website.

    The quotes below come from an NBFIRA public notice dated September 25, 2026, which cautions the public against transacting business with unlicensed virtual asset service providers. The notice lists seven companies that NBFIRA describes as licensed in terms of the Virtual Assets Act, 2025, with no compliance issues. It then cites two sections of the Act: section 9, on who may carry out a virtual asset business, and section 36, which, as cited in the notice, makes carrying out a virtual asset business in contravention of the Act an offence punishable by a fine, imprisonment or both.

    The quotes cover NBFIRA’s caution, section 9 of the Act as the notice cites it, and the risks NBFIRA names for using any other VASP than those listed in the notice, including online platforms. They are in their original language, English.

    Before you use a crypto platform, check whether it appears in NBFIRA’s list of licensed virtual asset service providers, or contact NBFIRA.

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