In 2018, #Algeria hammer on crypto. Article 117 of its Financial Law didn’t just “regulate” digital assets — it outlawed everything. Buying? Illegal. Selling? Illegal. Mining? Illegal. Even owning Bitcoin or a Ledger wallet is technically against the law.
Why so extreme?
🇩🇿 The government feared crypto could drain the dinar, fuel money laundering, and bring volatility into an already fragile system.
What happens if you break the rules?
💸 Expect fines, asset seizures, and even jail time. Banks like Baridimob are quick to flag suspicious payments.
Yet the ban hasn’t killed crypto — it’s just pushed it underground.
💻 P2P Telegram groups, cash deals, and quiet trades keep the market alive.
🎒 Some Algerians even order hardware wallets by mail… and they get delivered.
But there’s a price for staying off-chain:
🚫 No startups. No blockchain innovation hubs.
✈️ Young Algerians who dream in DeFi are leaving for crypto-friendlier countries.
🌍 Meanwhile, neighbors like Morocco and Tunisia are cautiously opening up — leaving Algeria more isolated.
Will this ever change?
Whispers of reform float around, and 2025 fintech laws hinted at digital modernization… but crypto is still locked out.
👉 For now, Algeria stands as one of the toughest anti-crypto countries on Earth — proof that you can ban the coins, but you can’t ban the conversation.
