How the Regulated Nigerian Crypto Exchange, Busha, Grew to Over 800,000 Users by 2025 Despite Regulatory Challenges in Nigeria

In late 2017, as Bitcoin approached $20,000 and global interest hit fever pitch, Moyo Sodipo ran into a problem many Nigerians still face today: there was no easy way to buy or sell crypto locally.

“I had to ask someone in the U.S to help me buy Bitcoin and send it over. You always had to depend on someone,” he recalls.

That friction led Sodipo and his Co-Founders – a 5-person crew bonded from their Jumia days – to build Busha, a simple, accessible crypto trading app for Nigerians.

By 2019, after a private beta and fully bootstrapped effort, Busha launched publicly.


At the time, Nigeria’s crypto regulatory landscape was a blank canvas – no ban, no clarity. But Busha was proactive.

“Even in 2018, we reached out to the SEC and said, ‘Here’s what we’re building. We know there’s no framework, but regulate us anyway,’” Sodipo says.

That compliance-first stance – emphasizing KYC and transaction monitoring – would later become vital to their survival.

Development began in early 2018, led by Co-Founder and engineer, Michael Adeyeri, who wrote Busha’s first lines of code. The team juggled multiple roles: support, product, finance, ops, marketing – handled entirely in-house.

“We were more than colleagues,” Sodipo says. “We’d known each other over a decade. Almost like brothers.”

Validation came during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown. While global markets crashed, Busha saw users buying the dip.

“That moment showed us we’d built something essential,” he says.

On February 5, 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued a circular banning banks from processing crypto transactions.

“We call it Crypto Black Friday,” Sodipo says.

“It was chaos. I saw the circular on Twitter. My phone blew up. Customers panicked. Partners shut us off. Payment processors disappeared.”

Busha had to act fast. Withdrawals were processed manually. No time for meetings – only survival.

“If customers can’t access funds, you’re finished,” he says.

That crisis unexpectedly united the industry. Competing platforms joined a WhatsApp group to strategize, breaking the silence and silos that previously defined the space.

Even employees faced personal risks. Banks shut down accounts – including staff salary accounts – without warning. Yet, the 30 – 40 person team powered through, often putting in extra hours just to keep operations alive.

By June 2021, Busha had stabilized. The team reached out to every returning user, guided them through new processes, and encouraged referrals. Their transparent, always-on support became a lifeline.

“We went back to the trenches and rebuilt everything from scratch,” Sodipo says.

Later that year [2021], as reported by BitKE, Busha raised a $4.2 million seed round led by Jump Capital – proof of their resilience.

“We’d survived the ban, rebuilt trust, and grown – without external funding. That’s rare.”

In December 2023, the CBN finally reversed its stance and allowed banks to work with crypto firms again.

“For a moment, I just sat there,” Sodipo says. “It was the happiest day of my life as a founder.”

The relief was real. No more workarounds. No more shadows.

By 2024, Nigeria’s SEC launched the Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Program – a framework to formally license crypto platforms. Thanks to its early compliance efforts, Busha became one of the first exchanges to receive a provisional license.

“That license was a reward for all the hardship. Now we can walk into any bank, any boardroom, and say: we’re licensed,” says Sodipo.

Internally, it was a turning point. “No more fear. Our team could finally wear their crypto badges with pride.”

Today, Busha serves over 800,000 users, with 10% monthly actives. It’s expanded to Kenya, and launched Busha Yield (for crypto interest) and Busha Spend (to use crypto at retail outlets).

Sodipo believes one of the biggest lessons from the journey is education – for customers, regulators, and the public.

“Back in 2019, crypto was synonymous with Ponzi schemes. Now, with stablecoins and real-world use cases, it’s different.

People are seeing the utility.”

When asked what’s stayed with him over the years, he pauses:

“If you’re building in a misunderstood space like crypto, pushback is inevitable.

Resilience in crisis isn’t optional – it’s the only way to survive. We reached out to regulators before they had rules. We didn’t wait to be caught off guard.”

Would he do it all again?

“Absolutely. The journey’s been wild – but we’re just getting started.”

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