Algeria bans cryptocurrencies: what does the new law say?
Le July 24, 2025, Algeria officially adopted the Law No. 25-10, published in the Official Journal No. 48, strengthening its legislative arsenal against money laundering. This text, which has gone relatively unnoticed in the mainstream media, nevertheless constitutes a decision with serious consequences: the total ban on cryptocurrencies on national territory.
Article 6a specifies that the following are now prohibited:
- The issue, possession, use, purchase and sale of any form of cryptocurrency;
- Mining, now classified as illicit activity;
- La promotion or operation of exchange platforms, digital wallets or services related to crypto-assets.
Offenders are liable to prison sentences of up to one year and fines of up to one million Algerian dinars, or approximately 8000 euros.
The text justifies these measures by the need to combat money laundering, terrorist financing and tax fraud.
Algeria marks a clear break with the global trend
This radical decision places Algeria against the current of a clear international movement: the controlled and gradual adoption of cryptocurrencies.
- The European Union adopted the regulation in 2024 Mica, a strict regulatory framework but favorable to crypto innovation.
- United States have validated Bitcoin ETFs, opening the doors to mass institutional adoption.
- Le Salvador made Bitcoin legal tender in 2021.
- Even in Africa, countries like Nigeria, Kenya, Central African Republic or the Morocco recently experiment, regulate or partially integrate digital assets into their financial policies.
- More discreet countries like the Kazakhstan or Bhutan have industrial mining farms which generate each year millions of dollars of income.
- Oil and gas producing countries such as Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates use Bitcoin mining within their facilities.
👉 Algeria therefore finds itself on the margins, alongside countries like China or Egypt, but without benefiting from either centralized technological control or a vision for the future in blockchain.
Yet, Algeria has immense potential... ignored
1. Cheap energy, a strategic asset
Algeria has undeniable assets to become a major player in the bitcoin mining in Africa:
- Low-cost electricity, thanks in particular to domestic natural gas; Algeria is one of the three countries in the world with cheap electricity. This is a boon for bitcoin miners.
- Dry climate conducive to cooling machines;
- Vast territory, desert areas available to accommodate large infrastructures.
👉 These conditions could position Algeria as a ecological and strategic mining hub on a continental scale. The country could greatly benefit from mining farm installations in the south of the country, thanks to oil installations.
—> Read the article: » Oil companies reduce their environmental impact thanks to Bitcoin«
2. A connected, dynamic and competent youth
Young Algerians, increasingly familiar with cryptos, wallets or decentralized platforms, could have become players in the Web3 revolution.
The outright ban creates a climate of fear, and pushes to the talent drain towards more open countries.
The economic consequences of such a blockage
- Loss of tax and technological opportunities :
Significant revenues from mining or trading platforms could have been replenish public coffers, while creating jobs. - capital flight :
Algerian investors, whether from the diaspora or local, will avoid injecting funds into a country where any crypto activity is now punishable by imprisonment. - Strengthening the black market :
The ban will not prevent the use of cryptocurrencies, but the will move underground, without any framework of protection for citizens.
Innovation cannot be stopped
The internet, artificial intelligence, and smartphones also sparked fears in their early days. Blockchain and cryptocurrencies are no exception.
But the nations that will choose to support this transition rather than repressing it will be those who will reap the fruits of the next global financial revolution.
Algeria is a great country in the making that can become a giant in Africa.
Rich in minerals, oil, gas, breathtaking landscapes, a lively and educated youth, and a past steeped in history, Algeria has all the assets to play a major role on the African and international scene.
It is a multi-colored, complex and powerful country, at the crossroads of the Arab, Mediterranean and African worlds.
👉 This immense potential deserves a long-term vision, capable of transforming the resources of the soil and the mind into levers of sovereignty, prosperity and innovation.
Another middle solution is still possible
It is not too late for Algeria review or limit its current position. Without necessarily immediately legalizing the use of cryptocurrencies for the general public, the State could consider a partial opening, a authorizing mining under public control or regulated by licensesThis would allow the country to take advantage of its abundant energy resources, without losing control of the financial system.
Many countries have operated strategic reversals after initial bans. The Nigeria, for example, faced with massive use of cryptocurrencies despite the 2021 ban, finally opted for a more flexible regulations in 2023, by recognizing exchange platforms and trying to integrate this activity into its economic system.
👉 Rather than fighting a rapidly expanding technology, Algeria could adopt a pragmatic approach, a launching a national study on mining opportunities, a Consultant experts, engineers and economists, and by testing pilot projects in underexploited regions.
In a changing world, It is riskier to remain fixed than to dare to experiment intelligently.
There is still time, perhaps, to review this position in the future.
But for now, Algeria has just missed a strategic meeting with progress...
