SEC warns Nigerian investors as it flags Zugacoin and Samzuga GPT

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a stern warning to the Nigerian public against investing in Zugacoin and Samzuga GPT, describing them as unauthorised crypto assets operating without regulatory approval.

In a statement, the commission disclosed that it had observed a surge in online advertisements promoting Zugacoin under variants such as SZCB and SZCB2—and Samzuga GPT. The SEC emphasized that neither of the assets nor their promoters are registered to operate in any capacity within the Nigerian capital market.

“The Commission hereby informs the public that the promoters or issuers of Zugacoin and Samzuga GPT are not registered to operate in any capacity in the Nigerian Capital Market, and also Zugacoin and Samzuga GPT are not approved by the Commission for issuance to the public,” the statement read.

According to preliminary investigations, both Zugacoin and Samzuga GPT fall under the category of meme coins, which typically lack intrinsic value, use cases, or tangible projects. The SEC cautioned that such tokens derive their value from hype and the efforts of their promoters or community, making them especially vulnerable to “pump and dump” schemes. These schemes involve inflating the price of an asset through misleading promotions, only for the promoters to sell off at a profit, leaving unsuspecting investors at a loss once the price crashes.

“Once the promoters dump their coins and stop hyping the coin, the coin price typically falls and investors lose money,” the SEC stated.

The commission urged the public to avoid purchasing or promoting Zugacoin, Samzuga GPT, or any of their variants, warning that investments in such schemes are made entirely at the investor’s own risk.

The SEC concluded by advising investors to carry out due diligence, including verifying the authenticity of any digital or crypto asset and confirming the registration status of promoters and trading platforms, before committing any funds.