How crypto is regulated in The Bahamas

Yes, crypto is legal in The Bahamas. You can buy, hold and sell Bitcoin without any licence. The law bites on businesses: anyone running an exchange, wallet service, staking product or brokerage “in or from within” The Bahamas must be registered with the Securities CommissionSCB The Securities Commission of The Bahamas, the regulator that registers and supervises crypto businesses under the DARE Act. Glossary under the DARE ActDARE Act The Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act 2024, the Bahamian law that requires crypto businesses operating in or from The Bahamas to register with the Securities Commission. Glossary 2024. Residents also face Central Bank exchange controlExchange control Central Bank rules on residents moving Bahamian dollars into foreign currency or foreign assets. Crypto is treated as a foreign asset. Glossary, because crypto counts as a foreign asset. This is general information from the statute and regulator documents, not legal advice.

From DARE 2020 to DARE 2024

The Bahamas moved early. The first DARE Act (No. 28 of 2020) took effect on 14 December 2020 and the first firms were registered in late 2021. Then, in November 2022, FTX collapsed and the Commission froze its Bahamian arm, FTX Digital Markets (see FTX in The Bahamas). After a consultation from 25 April to 31 May 2023, the replacement DARE Act 2024 (No. 40 of 2024) was gazetted on 26 July 2024 and commenced on 29 July 2024. It is tougher on exactly what failed at FTX: client assets must be segregated, client coins cannot be lent or re-used without consent, and exchanges face conflict-of-interest and liquidity rules.

Who has to register

Section 7: no one may carry on a digital asset business in or from within The Bahamas unless it is a company registered under section 9. Location is not the test. Under section 2, a firm based anywhere is caught if it serves a Bahamas resident who is not an accredited investorAccredited investor Under DARE 2024, an individual with net worth over $1 million or income over $200,000 in each of the last two years. Glossary (net worth over $1 million, or income over $200,000 in each of the last two years). So a foreign exchange onboarding ordinary Bahamians is arguably inside the Act. The legal risk sits with the platform, not you, but you have no Bahamian regulator to complain to. Our register of licensed crypto companies shows who is registered. Publishing software is not, by itself, a regulated activity.

Customer protections and bans

Custody (s.18). Client coins must be kept apart from the firm’s own, on-chain and in the books, and are shielded from the firm’s creditors if it fails. Lending, re-using or pledging them needs your prior consent and a warning that you could lose everything. If you prefer not to rely on a custodian, see our wallet guide.

Exchanges (ss.21–23) need market surveillance, listing rules and timely settlement, and must hold assets in The Bahamas equal to at least 12 months of operating expenses.

Staking (s.20). Providers must warn you in writing that staked assets may lose value, be stolen in a hack, be uninsured, and that rewards may create tax liabilities, usually in your home country, since The Bahamas has no income tax (see crypto tax).

Algorithmic stablecoins are banned (s.49). Backed stablecoins need full segregated reserves, quarterly audited proof-of-reserve reports and 1:1 redemption. No firm on the latest SCB register lists stablecoin issuance. Privacy tokens may not be offered for sale by issuers (s.38), and mixers fall outside any licence category. Mining as a business is prohibited (s.8) except on your own behalf or as part of a registered business.

Registration fees and the 2027 increase

On 28 August 2026 the SCB published draft DARE (Fees) Rules 2026; consultation closed on 25 September. They would replace the 2024 rules on 1 January 2027 and charge firms with several activities the highest fee plus $6,250 per extra activity. Final rules had not been published at our last check.

The Travel Rule

The Travel RuleTravel Rule A rule that makes crypto firms pass sender and recipient details along with transfers. The SCB set a USD/EUR 1,000 threshold in August 2026. Glossary makes crypto firms pass identity details with transfers, as banks do with wires. Under SCB guidance of 12 August 2026, at or above USD/EUR 1,000 the sender’s name, wallet and one more identifier (address, ID number or date and place of birth) must travel with the transfer; below it, names and wallets suffice. For transfers to your own wallet, at any value, the firm must screen the address and may refuse. Splitting transfers to dodge the threshold is flagged. Expect your exchange to ask who you are paying.

The Central Bank’s role

The Central Bank supervises banks and runs exchange control. Its Digital Assets Guidelines 2023, in force from 12 December 2023, make banks hold capital equal to any exposure to unbacked crypto (a 1,250% risk weight), cap that exposure at 2% of eligible capital and require ten business days’ notice before offering crypto services. For residents, banks may help buy or sell digital assets through the Investment Currency MarketInvestment Currency Market The Central Bank’s channel for residents buying foreign currency for overseas investment, with a 5% premium on purchases and 2.5% on sales. Glossary only with Exchange Control approval; ICM premiums are 5% on purchases and 2.5% on sales. Since 1 June 2024 individuals can convert up to $100,000 for overseas investment without prior approval, but no current Central Bank document says how card purchases of crypto are treated. Converting B$ to foreign currency also costs 1.5% stamp dutyStamp duty (FX) A 1.5% government tax on converting Bahamian dollars into foreign currency, charged by your bank. Glossary. Details by bank: Bahamian banks and crypto; on the CBDC, see Sand Dollar and crypto.

AML and the 2026 evaluation

Crypto firms count as financial institutions under the Financial Transactions Reporting Act 2018, so KYCKYC “Know your customer”: the ID checks (passport or driver’s licence, a selfie, proof of address) that regulated platforms must run before you can trade. Glossary and suspicious-transaction reporting apply. The Bahamas was grey-listed by FATF in October 2018 and removed on 18 December 2020. The SCB rates the sector’s 2025 money-laundering risk as Medium-High. A CFATF on-site evaluation is reported to run from 19 to 30 October 2026, covering virtual assets, so expect further rule changes.

Timeline of Bahamian crypto rules

What this means for you

Check the register before you deposit. Many global exchanges are licensed elsewhere instead: CEX.IO, for example, holds a UK FCA registration and US FinCEN MSB status but is not on the SCB register (our CEX.IO review). Treat any “SCB-licensed” claim with suspicion until you have checked it; our scam warning list collects the official notices. Selling to friends occasionally is not a business, but running a regular P2P desk may be (see the P2P guide). And keep records: banks will ask where money came from.

More on rules and safety

Registered companies The official DARE register, decoded firm by firm. Read guide Crypto tax Zero capital gains tax, and the costs that still catch people out. Read guide Scam warnings Official warning notices, decoded, and a 60-second legitimacy check. Read guide FTX in The Bahamas Timeline, court decisions and creditor distribution status. Read guide