Crypto & Digital Assets · Bahamas
Is crypto legal in Bahamas? Rules & regulation (2026)
Bahamas shaded by its crypto & digital assets status
Crypto is regulated in Bahamas, primarily under Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act, 2024 (DARE Act 2024), administered by the Securities Commission of The Bahamas (SCB); builds on DARE Act 2020..
The Bahamas has a comprehensive, in-force framework for digital assets under the DARE Act 2024, passed by Parliament on 26 July 2024 and effective from 29/30 July 2024. The SCB licenses/registers digital-asset businesses (exchanges, custodians, stablecoin issuers, advisers, staking providers) with detailed rules on conduct, disclosures, custody, and stablecoin reserves. The regime is expressly designed to reposition the Bahamas as a well-regulated crypto hub after the FTX collapse, while The Bahamas maintains its long-standing no-capital-gains, no-VAT-on-crypto tax posture.
Key points
DARE Act 2024 came into force on 29/30 July 2024, replacing DARE 2020, and expands scope to advisory, management, derivatives, staking and node services.
The Securities Commission of The Bahamas (SCB) registers and supervises Digital Asset Businesses (DABs), sets fit-and-proper standards, and enforces disclosure/financial-reporting duties.
Fiat/asset-backed stablecoins must be fully reserve-backed, disclose stabilisation mechanics via whitepaper, and meet custody/segregation/redemption rules; algorithmic stablecoins are expressly prohibited.
Digital-asset exchanges must meet real-time transaction reporting and operational-control standards; custodians must segregate client assets, run annual independent audits and issue asset statements.
DARE 2024 does not explicitly cover DeFi; mere software development is out of scope, but staking-as-a-business, node services and virtual-asset lending conducted by way of business are regulated activities.
The Bahamas has no capital gains tax, income tax or VAT on the purchase, sale or trading of digital assets; VAT does not apply to crypto transactions, though the government has flagged possible future review.
Timeline - major decisions & events
Parliament passed the Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act 2024, replacing the 2020 law. It added custody services, staking, derivatives, and advisory activities to the regulatory perimeter; banned algorithmic stablecoins; introduced a first-of-its-kind staking disclosure regime; and tightened investor-protection obligations on exchanges.
Securities Commission of The Bahamas ↗In the wake of the FTX collapse, the Securities Commission released a revised draft DARE Bill proposing stricter proof-of-reserve, stablecoin, and exchange requirements. Stakeholder comments from this consultation directly shaped the final DARE 2024 legislation.
Securities Commission of The Bahamas ↗The Securities Commission petitioned the Bahamas Supreme Court for directions on transferring the seized US$3.5 billion in FTX Digital Markets assets to joint provisional liquidators and ultimately to creditors, establishing the legal mechanism for customer recovery.
Securities Commission of The Bahamas ↗Prime Minister Philip Davis presented a national digital asset strategy paper to the House of Assembly, setting a vision through 2026 for expanding the DARE framework, attracting regulated crypto business, and building domestic expertise, published months before the FTX collapse undercut the ambition.
Government of The Bahamas ↗The Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act 2020 came into force, making The Bahamas one of the first jurisdictions globally to enact comprehensive legislation covering digital asset issuance, exchange, and payment services. The SCB was established as primary regulator; all VASPs must hold a physical presence in-country and meet FATF-aligned AML/CFT standards.
Securities Commission of The Bahamas ↗The Central Bank of The Bahamas rolled out the Sand Dollar across all islands, making The Bahamas the first country in the world to deploy a fully operational central bank digital currency. The Sand Dollar is legal tender pegged 1:1 to the Bahamian dollar, designed to expand financial inclusion across the remote archipelago.
Central Bank of The Bahamas ↗The Central Bank began a live Sand Dollar pilot on Exuma to test CBDC infrastructure for a geographically dispersed population; the pilot was expanded to Abaco in February 2020, before the national rollout. This put The Bahamas at the global frontier of CBDC deployment.
Central Bank of The Bahamas ↗Following an initial SCB review of digital tokens in March 2018, a multi-agency Crypto Asset Working Group was established in May 2018 to develop a coherent national regulatory approach. This body produced the foundational analysis that led directly to the DARE Bill and Act.
Securities Commission of The Bahamas ↗Bahamas - other topics
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