While European regulators are meticulously fine-tuning frameworks like MiCA to bring crypto into the mainstream, Algeria is opting for the ban hammer. A new provision, Article 6 bis, published in the Official Journal on July 24, 2025, leaves no room for interpretation, effectively outlawing the country’s entire crypto ecosystem.
The government, positioning itself as the steadfast guardian of the Algerian Dinar, argues the move is essential to protect national monetary sovereignty. The official reasoning follows a familiar script: combating money laundering, halting the financing of terrorism, and shielding unsuspecting citizens from the perils of fraud and “uncontrolled speculation.”
For Algeria’s rapidly growing, if discreet, crypto community, the dream of frictionless, borderless finance has met a rather firm non. The country had already prohibited cryptocurrencies back in 2018, but the previous law was vague and enforcement was sporadic. This new legislation is anything but.
What’s Actually Illegal?
The law now explicitly forbids a comprehensive list of activities. Anyone hoping to find a clever loophole will be disappointed. The prohibitions include:
- Issuing: Creating a new coin or token.
- Purchasing or Selling: Basic trading on any platform.
- Using: Employing crypto as a means of payment.
- Holding: The simple act of possessing virtual assets is now illegal, a significant escalation that targets casual investors and long-term “hodlers.”
- Trading: Active speculation on price movements.
- Promoting: Advertising, creating content, or evangelising for crypto.
- Platform Operations: Creating or running an exchange.
- Mining: Using computing power to validate transactions and earn crypto.
In short, if it involves cryptocurrency, it’s now likely against the law.
Pay the Fine, or Do the Time
The state is backing up its prohibitions with serious penalties. According to the newly introduced Article 31 bis, offenders face imprisonment of two months to one year.
Alternatively, or in addition, courts can impose a fine ranging from 200,000 DA to 1,000,000 DA. At current exchange rates, that’s roughly €1,300 to €6,700 — a substantial sum in the local economy. The law states the punishment can be the prison sentence, the fine, “or one of these two penalties,” giving judges considerable leeway.
This clear threat of jail time transforms crypto trading from a grey-market financial activity into a criminal offence.
A Global Outlier
Algeria’s hardline stance places it in a shrinking camp of countries opting for outright prohibition over regulation. While neighbours in the MENA region, like the UAE, are competing to become crypto hubs, Algeria is building a digital fortress.
The move contrasts sharply with the global trend. The European Union is implementing its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation to create a unified legal framework. In the Americas, El Salvador has famously adopted Bitcoin as legal tender, while the US continues its complex dance of regulation by enforcement.
By choosing this path, Algiers is betting that the risks of financial instability and illicit activities posed by crypto outweigh any potential benefits of innovation in digital finance. For local tech talent and those who saw crypto as a hedge against inflation or a tool for financial inclusion, the message is clear: innovate elsewhere.
The government has drawn its line in the digital sand. The question now is how local users will react — whether they will abandon crypto entirely or if the scene will be driven deeper underground, powered by VPNs, peer-to-peer exchanges, and a renewed spirit of defiance. The cat-and-mouse game between state control and technology has officially been upgraded.