Underground Crypto Trading in Tunisia: How People Bypass the Ban

On paper, cryptocurrency is illegal in Tunisia. Since May 2018, the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT) has banned all crypto transactions-no buying, selling, or holding Bitcoin, Ethereum, or USDT is allowed under the law. But if you walk through the streets of Tunis, Sfax, or Bizerte, you’ll find dozens of young people quietly trading crypto using their phones. They’re not breaking the law because they’re reckless-they’re doing it because they have no other choice.

Why Did Tunisia Ban Crypto?

The ban wasn’t random. Tunisia’s financial system is built on strict Islamic finance rules and state-controlled banking. The BCT feared crypto could undermine the Tunisian Dinar, enable money laundering, or destabilize the economy. They saw crypto as a threat to their control over money flows. So they shut it down completely. No gray area. No exceptions.

But here’s the twist: the ban didn’t stop crypto. It just pushed it underground.

How Do People Trade Crypto in Tunisia Today?

Tunisians don’t use local exchanges-there aren’t any. Instead, they rely on global peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms like Binance P2P and a decentralized trading system that connects buyers and sellers directly without a central authority. These platforms let users trade crypto for cash, mobile money, or even gift cards.

The most popular coins? Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT. USDT is especially common because it’s pegged to the US dollar, making it a stable way to protect savings from inflation. Tunisia’s currency has lost over 40% of its value since 2018. Many people see crypto as their only real hedge.

To access these platforms, traders use VPNs and a tool that masks internet traffic to bypass government blocks on crypto websites. The government blocks known crypto sites, but new ones pop up constantly. Traders switch between platforms like KuCoin, a global exchange offering low-fee trading and support for hundreds of altcoins, MEXC, a platform popular for its advanced trading tools and margin options, and OKX, a major exchange with strong P2P infrastructure.

The Cash Problem: How Do You Turn Crypto Into Dinars?

This is the biggest hurdle. Tunisian banks block any transaction linked to crypto. If you try to deposit money from a crypto sale into your bank account, it gets flagged. Your account might freeze. You could get called in for questioning.

So traders invented workarounds. Some use cash meetups-buyers and sellers meet in cafes or malls to swap crypto for cash. Others use third-party intermediaries who accept crypto and pay out in dinars through unofficial channels. A few even use the Poste Tunisienne, the national postal service that offers money transfer services to move funds, though this carries legal risk.

A 2023 study by a Tunisian tech think tank found that 72% of crypto users rely on cash-based methods to convert their holdings. It’s messy, slow, and risky-but it works.

The Legal Risks Are Real

In 2021, a 17-year-old in Sousse was arrested for running a small crypto exchange on Telegram. He was jailed for three months. His case made national news and sparked debates in parliament. Since then, the BCT has increased monitoring. Banks now use AI systems to detect patterns linked to crypto trading-like sudden large deposits from unknown sources or frequent transfers to foreign wallets.

The law says crypto trading is a criminal offense. Penalties include fines up to 50,000 Tunisian Dinars (about $16,000 USD) and up to three years in prison. But enforcement is patchy. Most cases only happen when someone gets caught in a money laundering investigation or when a bank reports suspicious activity.

Still, the threat is enough to keep most traders cautious. They never use their real names on P2P platforms. They use burner phones. They avoid sharing screenshots. They never talk about crypto in public.

The Hypocrisy: The Government Builds Blockchain While Banning Crypto

Here’s the strangest part: while citizens risk jail for trading Bitcoin, the Tunisian government is quietly investing in blockchain technology.

The Ministry of Communications is testing a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), a digital version of the Tunisian Dinar issued and controlled by the central bank. They’ve partnered with international firms to build a blockchain-based payment system for public services. The goal? To reduce fraud and improve efficiency.

But here’s the contradiction: the CBDC is centralized. The government controls it. Crypto is decentralized. That’s the difference. The state wants digital money-but only if it can monitor every transaction. Citizens want money they can control themselves. That’s why the underground market keeps growing.

Who’s Leaving-and Why

The brain drain is real. Young Tunisian developers, engineers, and crypto entrepreneurs are packing up and moving. Canada, Switzerland, and Portugal now have thriving Tunisian crypto communities. One startup founder I spoke with moved to Lisbon in 2023. "I built a DeFi tool here," he told me. "In Tunisia, I’d be in jail. Here, I can get a visa, open a bank account, and hire a team." According to a 2025 survey by the Tunisian Tech Network, over 1,200 crypto-related professionals have left the country since 2020. That’s not just talent-it’s innovation, investment, and future tax revenue leaving with them.

Is Change Coming?

There are signs. In late 2025, a parliamentary committee proposed a draft bill to decriminalize personal crypto possession and create a licensing system for P2P trading platforms. The idea? Regulate it instead of punishing it.

The BCT has also started talking about fintech licenses for blockchain startups. They’re not ready to legalize Bitcoin-but they’re starting to admit that banning it didn’t work.

Still, no timeline exists. No vote is scheduled. The ban remains in full force.

What’s Next for Underground Crypto in Tunisia?

The underground market isn’t going away. It’s getting smarter. More Tunisians are learning how to use cold wallets, multi-signature accounts, and privacy tools like Monero. Some are even experimenting with NFTs and decentralized apps (dApps) that don’t involve buying or selling-just using blockchain for identity or record-keeping, which isn’t illegal.

The government’s strategy-ban, monitor, punish-is failing. People still trade. The tech still evolves. The demand for financial freedom hasn’t faded.

Eventually, the law will have to change. Not because it’s right. But because it’s impossible to enforce.