Equatorial Guinea Compliance Report

Generated 2026-09-22

Comprehensive Framework

Regulatory Overview

Regulatory Status: Dedicated crypto/VA legislation, licensing regime, active enforcement
Key Regulator(s): Ministry of Finance Press Release, UMAC Ministerial Committee, Reporting Authority, Ministry of Finance and Budget
Primary Legislation: Licences for digital-asset services exist in CEMAC law and cover Equatorial Guin, While there isn't a single regulation, BEAC has made statements regarding its CB, Law 2/1995 governs general gambling activities (online gaming, betting, casinos), Law 10/2017 provides regulatory reforms for the gambling sector., Government Bulletin on Crypto Regulation, No law, decree, regulation, or official gazette publication addressing cryptocur, The government passed a Fiscal Incentive Law to increase tax compliance by regis, The Anti-Corruption Law, which has been under discussion for more than a year, d, The Fiscal Incentive Law was proposed to increase tax compliance by registering
Travel Rule: Adopted — Threshold: Implemented
Tax Reporting: Equatorial Guinea levies no separate capital gains tax and no crypto-specific gains regime; company capital gains fall within taxable profits taxed at the 25% corporate income tax rate under the Tax Code enacted by Law n° 1/2024 of 19 November 2024.. Equatorial Guinea taxes company capital gains as part of taxable profits subject to corporate income tax at 25%, and no Equatorial Guinean instrument classifies virtual assets as property or as an asset for tax purposes.. Capital gains realized by individuals are generally treated as part of their ordinary income and taxed under the Personal Income Tax (PIT) regime.. Equatorial Guinea's personal income tax scale runs from 0% on annual income up to XAF 1,400,000 to a top marginal rate of 25% on income above XAF 15,000,000, with intermediate rates of 10%, 15% and 20%.. Capital gains realized by companies are typically included in their taxable profits and are subject to Corporate Income Tax (CIT).

Key Facts

aml The foundational CEMAC AML/CFT text is a UMAC Ministerial Committee règlement, not a UEAC directive: Règlement n° 01/03-CEMAC-UMAC of 4 April 2003, revised by Règlement n° 02/10 of 2 October 2010 and Règlement n° 01/16/CEMAC/UMAC/CM of 11 April 2016, and superseded by Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM of 20 December 2024, which applies directly in Equatorial Guinea without national transposition. GABAC is the FATF-style regional body for CEMAC and rated Equatorial Guinea Non-Compliant on Recommendation 15 in its mutual evaluation report adopted on 22 November 2024; virtual assets are nonetheless codified regionally, since art. 2 of Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM defines actif virtuel and PSAV and art. 6 makes virtual-asset service providers assujettis. Equatorial Guinea has no standalone national AML/CFT statute; the GABAC mutual evaluation adopted on 22 November 2024 records that the country relies entirely on the directly applicable CEMAC règlement, supplemented by the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, and no law numbered 4/2004 on money laundering appears in that report. Subsequent Decrees, Ordinances, or Circulars: There may be further national implementing texts or regulations issued by the Ministry of Finance or the Central Bank (BEAC) to clarify the application of AML/CFT laws to new sectors, including virtual assets. However, publicly available specific regulations for VASPs are scarce. For Individuals: Obtain and verify the customer's identity using reliable, independent source documents, data, or information (e.g., full name, date of birth, address, nationality, national ID number or passport details). For Legal Entities: Obtain and verify the legal entity's name, legal form, address, proof of incorporation, names of directors/partners, and beneficial ownership information. Beneficial Ownership: Identify and verify the natural person(s) who ultimately own or control the customer, or the natural person(s) on whose behalf a transaction is being conducted. Purpose and Nature of Business Relationship: Understand the purpose and intended nature of the business relationship.
general This is the central bank for the six CEMAC member states (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon). BEAC defines and conducts CEMAC monetary and exchange policy and issues the CFA franc, but it does not issue directives binding member states: AML/CFT and financial-market rules take the form of règlements of the UMAC Ministerial Committee, prudential rules come from COBAC, and market rules from COSUMAF. BEAC operates national directorates in each of the six CEMAC states, but enforcement of financial regulation rests with the community supervisors, COBAC for credit and microfinance institutions and COSUMAF for the financial market, rather than with national finance ministries. No BEAC instruction prohibiting crypto-assets in CEMAC exists; the only regional measure is COBAC décision D-2022/071 of 6 May 2022, which bars COBAC-supervised institutions from holding, using, exchanging or converting crypto-assets and leaves private persons free to hold them. Date: May 25, 2022 Monetary sovereignty and financial stability. Consumer protection and the speculative nature of crypto-assets. Risks associated with money laundering and terrorist financing.
licensing A licensing regime for digital-asset services applies in Equatorial Guinea through directly applicable community law: article 144 of Règlement n° 01/22/CEMAC/UMAC/CM/COSUMAF du 21 juillet 2022 requires COSUMAF agrément as prestataire de services sur actifs numériques, and the Règlement Général COSUMAF du 23 mai 2023 supplies the framework, while no implementing instruction has been issued, no minimum capital is set and no agrément has been granted. Licences for digital-asset services exist in CEMAC law and cover Equatorial Guinea: article 160 of Règlement n° 01/22/CEMAC/UMAC/CM/COSUMAF lists custody for third parties, purchase and sale against legal tender, platform operation, reception and transmission of orders, portfolio management, advice and placement, all subject to COSUMAF agrément, and no such agrément has yet been issued to any operator. BEAC issued no Circular No. 001/GR/2022 of 29 June 2022 on the prohibition of crypto-assets; BEAC's register of Instructions, Circulaires et Règlements lists no 2022 crypto instrument, and the CEMAC measure of that period is Décision COBAC D-2022/071 du 6 mai 2022, binding supervised institutions only. No CEMAC prohibition reaches the issuance, trading or holding of crypto-assets by any person: Décision COBAC D-2022/071 du 6 mai 2022 binds only institutions COBAC supervises, and Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM of 20 December 2024 instead treats virtual-asset service providers in Equatorial Guinea as regulated obliged entities subject to authorisation and AML/CFT duties. Exchanges: Prohibited from operating. Custody of digital assets for third parties is a licensable activity rather than a prohibited one in Equatorial Guinea: it appears in the list of services requiring COSUMAF agrément under Règlement n° 01/22/CEMAC/UMAC/CM/COSUMAF, and the Règlement Général COSUMAF du 23 mai 2023 defines the PSAN as a professional providing purchase-sale, custody and platform services. Payment institutions in Equatorial Guinea are barred from crypto-asset dealings by Décision COBAC D-2022/071 du 6 mai 2022 as COBAC-supervised entities, not by any prohibition on crypto payment processing as such; unsupervised persons face no equivalent bar and virtual-asset service provision is instead subject to authorisation under Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM. Other VASPs: Any entity dealing with virtual assets in a professional capacity.
sanctions All U.S. persons and entities globally. All transactions occurring in whole or in part within the United States. Entities owned or controlled by U.S. persons. In some cases, non-U.S. persons if their activities have a nexus to the U.S. financial system or involve designated persons (secondary sanctions). Compliance for VASPs: VASPs must implement a robust, risk-based sanctions compliance program, including: Know Your Customer (KYC) & Customer Due Diligence (CDD): Obtaining and verifying identity information of users. Sanctions Screening: Screening all customers and counterparties (senders and receivers of funds/crypto) against OFAC's Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) List and other relevant sanctions lists (e.g., Sectoral Sanctions Identifications List, Non-SDN Palestinian Legislative Council List, etc.) before onboarding and on an ongoing basis. Transaction Monitoring: Monitoring all virtual asset transactions for patterns indicative of sanctions evasion or illicit activity.
securities The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has assessed Equatorial Guinea through its mutual evaluation process, which includes scrutiny of AML/CFT measures that would apply to any financial activity, but no crypto-specific implementation has been publicly documented. Equatorial Guinea No licensing regime for crypto businesses exists; the general investment framework permits foreign investors to establish businesses in the non-oil sector, but no authority has been designated to license digital asset activities. Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State The practical reality is that crypto businesses operate in a legal vacuum with significant opacity, lack of technical capacity, and corruption risks; comprehensive due diligence is essential before considering any entry into this market. Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State Equatorial Guinea is a member of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), which has begun enforcing new foreign currency regulations on companies operating in extractive industries as of January 1, 2022; these regulations may indirectly affect cross-border digital asset transactions but do not address crypto specifically. Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State The Ministry of Finance, Economy, and Planning leads the government's National Economic Diversification Strategy, developed in 2019 to comply with IMF-required reforms; however, no crypto or digital asset provisions have been introduced under this strategy. Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State Equatorial Guinea has a FATF mutual evaluation report that assesses the country's AML/CFT framework; the report notes substantial deficiencies that would affect prospects for compliance with FATF's virtual asset recommendations. Equatorial Guinea The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) data hub lists a regulatory authority for Equatorial Guinea, but there is no indication this authority has responsibility for digital assets or cryptocurrency. Regulatory Authority - Equatorial Guinea Article 27 of the country's fundamental law states "the State protects, guarantees, and controls the investment of foreign capital that contributes to the development of the country," which would theoretically apply to crypto investments but offers no specific guidance. Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State
status Equatorial Guinea has no specific legal framework governing cryptocurrency or digital assets as of 2025–2026; no dedicated crypto legislation, licensing regime, or regulatory authority has been established for virtual assets in the country Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State The country operates under the broader CEMAC (Central African Monetary and Economic Union) regional framework, with the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) as the central bank, but no crypto-specific regulations have been issued at either the national or regional level Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State No licensing or registration mechanism exists for crypto businesses — no entity has been granted a crypto license because no such license category exists in Equatorial Guinea law Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State The practical reality is that digital asset activity operates in a complete legal vacuum, with no regulatory clarity, no consumer protections, and no official guidance from any government authority Equatorial Guinea (01/02) - State.gov Businesses considering crypto operations in Equatorial Guinea face an opaque and high-risk environment given the country's poor rankings for corruption, transparency, and ease of doing business Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is a presidential republic in transition to multiparty democracy, with the President serving as Chief of State and a Council of Ministers appointed by the president; the legislative branch is the 80-member House of People's Representatives, and the judicial branch is the Supreme Tribunal Equatorial Guinea (01/02) - State.gov The Constitution was approved by national referendum on November 17, 1991, and amended in January 1995; the country achieved independence from Spain on October 12, 1968 Equatorial Guinea (01/02) - State.gov The country is a member of the Central African Monetary and Economic Union (CEMAC), a sub-regional economic zone comprising more than 50 million people, which has a central bank (Bank of Central African States, BEAC) and a common currency — the CFA franc, pegged to the euro Equatorial Guinea - United States Department of State
tax Equatorial Guinea levies no separate capital gains tax and no crypto-specific gains regime; company capital gains fall within taxable profits taxed at the 25% corporate income tax rate under the Tax Code enacted by Law n° 1/2024 of 19 November 2024. Equatorial Guinea taxes company capital gains as part of taxable profits subject to corporate income tax at 25%, and no Equatorial Guinean instrument classifies virtual assets as property or as an asset for tax purposes. Capital gains realized by individuals are generally treated as part of their ordinary income and taxed under the Personal Income Tax (PIT) regime. Equatorial Guinea's personal income tax scale runs from 0% on annual income up to XAF 1,400,000 to a top marginal rate of 25% on income above XAF 15,000,000, with intermediate rates of 10%, 15% and 20%. Capital gains realized by companies are typically included in their taxable profits and are subject to Corporate Income Tax (CIT). Equatorial Guinea's corporate income tax rate is 25% of taxable profits, with a minimum income tax of 1.5% of the year's turnover for fiscal year 2025, following the Tax Code enacted by Law n° 1/2024 of 19 November 2024. Equatorial Guinea's Tax Code carries no dedicated income tax rules for virtual assets, so crypto income falls under the general corporate income tax at 25% or the personal income tax scale of 0% to 25%. Income from cryptocurrency activity in Equatorial Guinea falls under the general personal income tax scale of 0% to 25% for individuals or the 25% corporate income tax for companies.
travel rule A virtual-asset travel rule binds Equatorial Guinea through art. 42 of Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024, which requires the originator's virtual-asset service provider to obtain and transmit accurate originator information and required beneficiary information, requires the beneficiary's provider to obtain, retain and disclose it to the authorities, and fixes the occasional-transaction threshold at 500 000 FCFA. The instrument was adopted by the Comité Ministériel de l'UMAC, not by BEAC, which has issued no virtual-asset instrument. No BEAC regulation on crypto-asset activities dated 27 March 2022 exists. Règlement n° 01/CEMAC/UMAC/CM is the AML/CFT règlement of 11 April 2016, repealed and replaced by Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024, and the CEMAC crypto-asset text is Règlement n° 01/22/CEMAC/UMAC/CM/COSUMAF du 21 juillet 2022, which subjects digital-asset service providers to a COSUMAF agrément. Equatorial Guinea is a CEMAC member state and CEMAC règlements apply directly in its legal order without national transposition, so Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024 and the PSAN regime of Règlement n° 01/22/CEMAC/UMAC/CM/COSUMAF bind Equatorial Guinean virtual-asset service providers. The 27 March 2022 BEAC crypto-asset regulation to which this record attaches has no existence. Règlement n° 01/CEMAC/UMAC/CM was adopted on 11 April 2016 and concerns the prevention and suppression of money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation, not crypto-asset activities; the 27 March 2022 date and the attribution to BEAC are fabricated, and the text was repealed by Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024. Art. 42 of Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024 sets the CEMAC virtual-asset transfer threshold at 500 000 FCFA for occasional transactions and imposes the originator and beneficiary information duties directly, rather than deferring to international standards; no CEMAC instrument contains the quoted phrase or a USD or EUR 1 000 threshold. The travel-rule threshold binding virtual-asset service providers in Equatorial Guinea is 500 000 FCFA under art. 42 of Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024; the USD 1 000 and EUR 1 000 figures are FATF Recommendation 16 illustration text and carry no legal force in the CEMAC zone. Virtual-asset service providers are covered by art. 2 and art. 6(e) of Règlement n° 02/24/CEMAC/UMAC/CM du 20 décembre 2024, which makes them reporting entities, and are licensed as prestataires de services sur actifs numériques under arts. 144 and 160 of Règlement n° 01/22/CEMAC/UMAC/CM/COSUMAF du 21 juillet 2022; no BEAC règlement n° 01/CEMAC/UMAC/CM covering crypto-asset service providers exists. Exchange between crypto-assets and fiat currencies.

Sources

This report is AI-generated from publicly available regulatory sources. Last updated: 2026-09-09. View full profile