The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken a major step toward regulating the country’s fast-growing virtual asset space, announcing plans to roll out a dedicated regulatory sandbox for crypto and other digital asset businesses.
In a press release issued on Friday, January 23, 2026, the SEC said the move forms part of efforts to operationalise the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025 (Act 1154), which positions the Commission as a co-regulator of virtual asset services in Ghana.
According to the SEC, the sandbox will provide a controlled environment under its supervision for companies to test innovative virtual asset products and services before they are fully licensed and deployed to the public.
“The sandbox shall provide a controlled environment under the SEC’s regulatory oversight to test innovative virtual asset products and services,” the Commission said.
Once the framework is completed, the SEC will open applications for licensing across a broad range of virtual asset activities. These include virtual asset exchanges and trading platforms, token issuance, tokenisation services, virtual asset exchange-traded funds (ETFs), asset management, brokerage and investment advisory services, as well as virtual asset mining and validation related to securities.
The Commission explained that the initiative is designed to strike a balance between encouraging innovation and protecting investors, while also safeguarding market integrity.
“The sandbox platform shall support responsible innovation while strengthening investor protection, market integrity, and compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing standards,” the SEC noted.
The regulator added that lessons from the pilot phase of the sandbox will shape future policies and licensing frameworks for virtual assets in Ghana.
