The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has described Nigeria’s instant payment system as one of the most advanced in the world, attributing its success to sustained innovation, regulatory foresight, and digital transformation across the financial landscape.
This assertion was made by Mr Musa Jimoh, Director of Payments System Policy at the CBN, during the FintechNGR Q2 Regulators’ Forum Webinar held on Thursday. Themed “Beyond Compliance: Unlocking Innovation with Nigeria’s Open Banking Framework,” the forum drew key players from across the fintech and regulatory spectrum.
Jimoh highlighted how Nigeria’s payment infrastructure has matured into a real-time, secure, and inclusive ecosystem. “Our payments happen within seconds, and that’s a very big one for Nigeria,” he said, underscoring the country’s global standing in fintech efficiency.
He traced the evolution of Nigeria’s payment system back to 2006 when the CBN initiated the first National Payment System Vision. A key milestone came in 2010 when the bank enforced a migration to chip-and-PIN cards, bolstering card security nationwide.
The CBN official listed key regulatory interventions that shaped the landscape—mobile and agent banking, biometric Bank Verification Number (BVN), Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols, and the introduction of a cashless policy. “Today, Nigeria has over 160 licenses granted for financial and payment services,” he disclosed.
Jimoh further emphasized the potential of open banking to accelerate innovation, stating that banks hold large data reserves that, with customer consent, could be used to build new financial products.
While acknowledging challenges such as API standardisation and cybersecurity, he noted that the CBN has created dedicated workstreams to tackle these issues and foster a more inclusive and secure open banking framework.
“The CBN aims to create an environment where openness, inclusiveness, and innovation drive national economic resilience and prosperity,” Jimoh concluded, reaffirming the apex bank’s commitment to enabling innovation through partnerships, regulation, and technological advancement.
