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Tag: CBN

CBN Restricts Mobile Banking Apps To One Device, New Rules Take Effect July 2026

Wale busari03 mins

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced that, starting July 1, 2026, mobile banking applications will be limited to a single device per customer. Under the new rule, customers will no longer be able to use the same bank app on multiple devices simultaneously. The directive, communicated to banks, financial institutions, and payment service providers, forms part of updated guidelines for Instant Payments (IP) operations in Nigeria. Musa Jimoh, Director of the CBN’s Payments System Policy Department, highlighted key provisions in the circular: Single-Device Access: Mobile banking apps must be bound to one device. Switching to a new device will require reactivation and authentication. Opt-In/Opt-Out for IP Services: Customers can choose to opt in or out of IP services at any time, with multi-factor authentication (MFA) required. Customers in opt-out mode will be unable to perform online instant transfers but can still conduct transactions by visiting a bank branch. Adjustable Transaction Limits: Users can set transaction limits within the existing caps of N25 million for individuals and N250 million for corporates, subject to due diligence and risk assessment. Limits take effect immediately after MFA verification. Fraud Monitoring: Banks are required to implement Enterprise Fraud Monitoring for both inflows and outflows to detect and restrict suspicious activity. Enhanced Authentication for Online Accounts: New and reactivated online accounts must undergo liveliness checks and real-time validation against BVN/NIN databases. Additional security measures, such as MFA, biometric authentication, and soft/hard tokens, are mandatory. Initial Transaction Limits for New Devices: For both new and existing accounts, apps activated on a new device will be capped at N20,000 in the first 24 hours. Internet Banking Security: First-time logins on new devices must pass additional MFA verification. The CBN emphasized that these measures are minimum standards for Instant Payments in Nigeria, designed to strengthen security, curb fraud, and promote financial system stability. All provisions will come into force from July 1, 2026.

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CBN Directs Banks To Restrict Credit For Large-Scale Borrowers With Non-Performing Loans

Wale busari03 mins

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has ordered banks to limit access to certain banking services for large borrowers with non-performing loans, as part of efforts to strengthen credit discipline and safeguard the stability of the financial system. In a letter dated March 12, 2026, and signed by Olubukola Akinwunmi, Director of Banking Supervision, the CBN instructed that borrowers whose loans are classified as non-performing in the Credit Risk Management System (CRMS) or any licensed private credit bureau will no longer qualify for new credit facilities. The apex bank said the directive aims to reduce the risks posed by large-ticket borrowers whose defaults could threaten the banking sector. “Effective immediately, all financial institutions shall restrict further credit access: Any large-ticket obligor with a non-performing facility recorded in the CRMS and/or any licensed private credit bureau shall not be granted additional credit facilities. This includes loans and other forms of direct credit. Such obligors shall also be denied banking facilities or contingent liabilities, including bankers’ confirmations, letters of credit, performance bonds, or advance payment guarantees,” the CBN stated. The restrictions apply to borrowers classified as large-ticket obligors under Clause 3.2(d) of the Prudential Guidelines for Deposit Money Banks. Banks are also required to secure additional realisable collateral from affected borrowers to protect existing exposures. According to the CBN, large-ticket obligors are borrowers whose total exposure across banks exceeds the Single Obligor Limit and whose obligations significantly impact a bank’s Capital Adequacy Ratio or pose systemic risks to the financial system. Exposure assessments will be based on data from the CRMS and licensed private credit bureaus.

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CBN Lowers Interest Rate To 26.5% To Support Businesses And Ease Cost Of Living

Wale busari03 mins

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has lowered the country’s benchmark interest rate, the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), from 27 percent to 26.5 percent in a move aimed at reducing financial pressures on households and businesses. Announcing the decision on Tuesday after the committee’s 304th meeting, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso described the rate cut as part of a shift toward more accommodative lending conditions, following months of aggressive interest rate hikes. The 50 basis-point reduction is intended to make borrowing more accessible while maintaining control over economic stability. The MPC cited progress in tackling the high cost of living and noted that previous strict policies are beginning to take effect. Improved stability of the naira in the foreign exchange market was also highlighted as a factor influencing the decision. “The Committee’s decision was based on a balanced evaluation of risks to the outlook, which suggests that the ongoing disinflation path will continue,” Cardoso said. Other regulatory measures remain unchanged to safeguard the banking sector. The Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) stays at 45 percent for commercial banks and 16 percent for merchant banks. Meanwhile, the Standing Facility Corridor, which sets the borrowing and lending range for banks at the CBN, has been adjusted to +50 to -450 basis points around the new MPR of 26.5 percent. Cardoso further revealed that 20 banks have met the CBN’s recapitalisation requirements, praising the sector’s resilience. The CBN emphasized that the rate cut seeks to balance price stability with business growth, enabling companies to access loans more affordably while curbing rapid inflation. The central bank expressed optimism that as long as food supply continues and the exchange rate remains stable, Nigeria’s economy will maintain its recovery trajectory.

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CBN Lifts Cash Deposit Limit, Increases Weekly Withdrawal Cap To N500,000

Wale busari03 mins

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has removed the cap on cash deposits and increased the weekly cash withdrawal limit across all channels to N500,000 for individuals, up from N100,000. The circular announcing the changes, titled “Revised Cash-Related Policies,” was signed by Dr. Rita Sike, Director of the Financial Policy & Regulation Department. According to the CBN, the policy revisions aim to reduce the rising cost of cash management, enhance security, and curb money laundering risks associated with Nigeria’s heavy reliance on cash. The bank noted that previous measures were designed to reduce cash usage and promote electronic payments, but updates were necessary to reflect current realities. Key changes, effective January 1, 2026, include the removal of the cumulative deposit limit, with fees on excess deposits abolished. The cumulative weekly withdrawal limit has been raised to N500,000 for individuals and N5 million for corporates. Withdrawals exceeding these limits will attract excess withdrawal fees. The prior special monthly authorisation allowing individuals to withdraw N5 million and corporates N10 million has been discontinued. For ATM withdrawals, daily limits remain at N100,000 per customer, with a maximum of N500,000 weekly, which counts toward the overall weekly withdrawal cap. Excess withdrawals will incur charges of 3 percent for individuals and 5 percent for corporates, split 40 percent to the CBN and 60 percent to the operating bank. Banks have also been directed to ensure ATMs are loaded with all currency denominations. The existing N100,000 limit on over-the-counter encashment of third-party cheques remains, and such withdrawals will count toward the weekly cumulative limit. Banks are required to submit monthly reports to relevant supervisory departments. Exemptions apply to revenue-generating accounts of federal, state, and local governments, as well as accounts of microfinance and primary mortgage banks. However, exemptions previously granted to embassies, diplomatic missions, and aid-donor agencies have been removed.

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CBN Proposes Five-Year Ban for Serial Dud Cheque Issuers

Wale busari03 mins

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is proposing a policy that would impose a five-year ban on individuals identified as “serial dud cheque issuers.” Under the draft guidelines, a person becomes a serial dud cheque issuer if they issue cheques three times that are returned due to insufficient funds. The CBN outlined the proposed measure in an exposure draft of its ‘Guidelines on the Treatment of Dud Cheques’, released yesterday, which would allow banks and other financial institutions to blacklist such offenders. According to the draft, individuals on the blacklist would be denied access to the cheque clearing system, barred from obtaining credit from any bank, and restricted from opening current accounts during the five-year sanction period. Banks would also be required to impose returned-cheque charges in line with the national Guide to Charges. All commercial, merchant, non-interest, mortgage, and microfinance banks are mandated to enforce the sanctions, retrieve unused cheque leaves, and report offenders’ details to the Credit Risk Management System (CRMS) and at least two private credit bureaux. The guidelines include stricter penalties for repeat offenders. Any person who issues another dud cheque after completing a five-year ban would face an additional five-year sanction for each recurrence. Lifting the ban would only be possible once the sanction period expires or if a financial institution verifies that a report was made in error. Banks are required to update the customer’s status with the credit bureaux and provide formal notification when the sanction ends. The CBN also proposed heavy penalties for non-compliant banks, including a minimum N5 million fine for failing to enforce restrictions and a minimum N3 million fine for opening a current account without checking the customer’s CRMS status.

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CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso To Lead Nigeria At 2025 World Bank And IMF Meetings

Wale busari01 mins

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, will head Nigeria’s delegation to the 2025 World Bank and IMF Annual Meetings in Washington D.C., beginning October 13. Cardoso, who also serves as Nigeria’s alternate governor at the Bretton Woods institutions, will step in for Finance Minister Wale Edun, who is currently unavailable. The announcement was made in a statement by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga on Sunday in Abuja. The delegation will also include Minister of State for Finance Doris Uzoka-Anite and other senior government officials. The World Bank’s Development Committee Plenary is scheduled for October 16, followed by the IMF’s International Monetary and Financial Committee meeting on October 17. The meetings will also feature regional briefings, press conferences, and policy forums covering global development, financial markets, and the world economy.  

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SERAP urges NASS to reject bill punishing non-voters.

SERAP Sues CBN Over Failure To Disclose LG Allocations

Fola Badmus511 mins

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) “over the failure to disclose the details of any direct payments to the 774 local government councils in Nigeria including the amounts sent to each council.” SERAP’s suit followed a landmark judgment by the Supreme Court last July, which held that allocations from the Federation Account with the CBN must be paid directly to democratically elected local government councils, and that no governor has the power to keep, control or use the money meant for the councils. In the suit number FHC/L/MSC/521/2025 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court, Lagos, SERAP is asking the court to “direct and compel the CBN to disclose the details of any direct payments to the 774 local government councils in Nigeria including the amounts sent to each council since the Supreme Court judgment.” SERAP is also asking the court to “direct and compel the CBN to disclose whether any direct payment has been made from the Federation Account with the CBN to the local government councils in Rivers State and to explain the rationale for any such payment. In the suit, SERAP is arguing that, “The CBN should make it possible for citizens to have access to the details of any direct payments to the 774 local government councils to ensure transparency and accountability, and judge whether the CBN and other agencies are complying with the Supreme Court judgment.” SERAP is also arguing that “Granting the reliefs sought would go a long way in promoting the values and principles that underlie the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and are inherent characteristics of an open democratic society.” According to SERAP, “State governors are starving local governments of funds and putting them in peril, despite the Supreme Court’s binding orders. State governors’ blatant disregard for the Supreme Court’s orders undermines the integrity of the court and poses a direct challenge to the rule of law.” SERAP is also arguing that, “The CBN ought to act in the public interest to ensure that the 774 councils in the country directly get their own money from the Federation Account, as ordered by the Supreme Court.” SERAP is arguing that, “The CBN also has the constitutional and statutory duty to ensure that no part of the Federation is governed contrary to the Nigerian Constitution or by anybody that is not constitutionally empowered to do so.” The suit filed on behalf of SERAP by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare and Ms Oluwakemi Oni, read in part: “The CBN should be facilitating compliance with the Supreme Court’s orders. If state governors get away with ignoring the court, it will undermine the ability of the bank to credibly perform its statutory duties. “States and the FCT have continued to undermine and endanger the existence of local governments and their ability to effectively function as the third tier of government as envisioned under the Nigerian Constitution. “The CBN has a constitutional and statutory duty to protect the allocations in the Federation Account and the public funds disbursed from that Account directly to each of the constitutionally recognized three tiers of government. “The CBN also has the constitutional and statutory duty to protect any tier of the federal governance structure from going extinct or being destroyed. “Local government councils are legitimate owners of their allocations from the Federation Account. “Ensuring that all restrictions against direct disbursement of allocations from the Federation Account to the 774 councils will comply with the orders by the Supreme Court and stop states and the Federal Capital Territory from tampering with the allocations ahead of the 2027 general elections. “States and the FCT no longer have the right to retain the allocations for local governments in the Federation Account as they have persistently failed to use the allocations for the benefit of the local government councils and Nigerians. “The disbursement of the allocations meant for the 774 councils to states would be at the expense of poor Nigerians and continue to undermine the rights and well-being of those at the bottom of the economy and exacerbate the growing poverty in the country. “The CBN could play an important role in revitalising the 774 councils in the country and improving opportunities for Nigerians who reside in those councils. The CBN should not allow states to act in breach of the Supreme Court judgment and do whatever they like with the public funds meant for local government councils. “The CBN has a responsibility to comply with the Nigerian Constitution and the country’s international human rights and anticorruption obligations in the exercise of its statutory powers and functions “Local government councils are entitled to a direct payment from the Federation Account of the amount standing to its credit in the said Federation Account. States should not be collecting, receiving, spending or tampering with the local government council funds from the Federation Account meant for the benefit of the councils. “The Supreme Court in a groundbreaking judgment declared that the Freedom of Information Act ‘is applicable and applies to the public records in the Federation’, including those kept by the CBN. “By the combined reading of the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, the Freedom of Information Act 2011 and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, applicable throughout Nigeria, there are transparency obligations imposed on the CBN to widely disclose the information sought by SERAP. “The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the country’s anti-corruption and human rights obligations rest on the principle that citizens should have access to information regarding their public institutions’ activities. “Nigeria’s Supreme Court in the July 2024 judgment declared unconstitutional and unlawful the retaining and using by the 36 state governors and FCT minister of allocations in the Federation Account meant for the 774 local governments in the country. “Following the judgment, the 774 local governments have reportedly opened dedicated accounts with CBN for the direct disbursement of allocations to them from the Federation Account. “Former president Muhammadu…

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SERAP gives CBN 48 hours to withdraw hike in ATM transaction fees

Fola Badmus011 mins

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, to use his ‘leadership position to immediately withdraw the patently unlawful, unfair, unreasonable and unjust increase in Automated Teller Machine (ATM) transaction fees’. SERAP urged him to ensure that the exercise of CBN statutory powers and functions does not inflict misery on poor Nigerians and contribute to human rights abuses. The CBN recently announced that ATM withdrawals made at a machine owned by a bank but outside its branch premises will now attract a charge of N100 per N20,000 withdrawn. ATM withdrawals at shopping centres, airports or standalone cash points, will incur a N100 fee plus a surcharge of up to N500 per N20,000 withdrawal. Banks ‘are advised to apply the increased ATM fees with effect from March 1, 2025.’ In the open letter dated 15 February 2025 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: “the manifestly unlawful, unfair, unreasonable, and unjust increase in ATM transaction fees will hit hardest those at the bottom of the economy and exacerbate the growing poverty in the country.” SERAP said, “The increase in ATM transaction fees ought to have been shouldered by wealthy banks and their shareholders, not the general public. The increase only benefits the CBN and commercial banks at the expense of poor Nigerians.” According to SERAP, “CBN policies should not be skewed against poor Nigerians and heavily in favour of banks that continue to declare trillions of naira in profits mostly at the expense of their customers. The increase in ATM transaction fees would inflict misery on poor Nigerians and contribute to human rights abuses.” The letter, read in part: “The increase in ATM transaction fees is also entirely inconsistent with the oft-expressed commitment by the government of President Bola Tinubu to address the growing poverty across the country.” “We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within 48 hours of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you and the CBN to comply with our request in the public interest. “The exorbitant and unlawful increase in ATM transaction fees at a time the country is facing economic and financial crises would contribute further to the impoverishment of the population. “Imposing exorbitant ATM transaction fees on socially and economically vulnerable Nigerians at a time several Nigerian banks are declaring trillions of naira in profits yearly is manifestly unfair, unreasonable and unjust. “The increase cannot be justified under the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended], the CBN Act, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, and the country’s international human rights obligations. “The patently unlawful, unfair, unreasonable and unjust increase in ATM transaction fees also inherently contributes to violations of the human rights of socially and economically Nigerians. “The increase creates a two-tiered financial system that discriminates against poor Nigerians who may not be able to afford or pay the increased fees. “While the government of President Tinubu has primary responsibility for protecting the rights of Nigerians, the CBN also has the responsibilities to ensure that its practices and guidelines do not cause or contribute to human rights abuses. “The CBN could play an important role in promoting economic opportunities for Nigerians where the majority of the people live in poverty. “The CBN is failing to comply with the Nigerian Constitution, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act and the country’s international human rights obligations in the exercise of its statutory powers and functions. “The CBN is also compromising its stated mission to advance the management of the country’s economy, and ultimately, sustainable development. “According to our information, the CBN through a Circular to all banks and other financial institutions dated February 10 2025 stated that it has reviewed and increased the ATM transaction fees prescribed in section 10(7) of the CBN Guide to Charges by Bank, Other Financial and Non-Bank Financial Institutions 2020. “Section 42(1)(a) of the CBN Act 2007 provides that ‘The Bank shall wherever necessary seek the co-operation of and co-operate with other banks in Nigeria to – (a) promote and maintain adequate and reasonable financial service for the public.’ It also provides that any policy of the CBN ‘shall be in the national interest.’ “Section 1(c)(d) of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018 provides that the objectives of the Act are to ‘protect and promote the interests and welfare of consumers’ and ‘prohibit restrictive or unfair business practices’ such as the exorbitant and unreasonable increase in ATM transaction fees by the CBN. “Significantly, the provisions of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act are directly binding on the CBN, as the provisions constrain the exercise of the statutory powers and functions of the institution. “Specifically, section 2(1) the Act provides that its provisions ‘apply to all undertakings [such as the CBN] and scope of application to all commercial activities within, or having effect within, Nigeria. “Section 2(2) provides that, ‘This Act also applies to and is binding upon- (a) a body corporate or agency of the Government of the Federation; (b) a body corporate; (c) all commercial activities aimed at making profit and geared towards the satisfaction of demand from the public.’ “According to section 70(1) of the Act, ‘For the purpose of this Act, an undertaking [such as the CBN] is considered to be in a dominant position if it is able to act without taking account of the reaction of its customers or consumers.’ “The Act prohibits abuse of dominant position by the CBN including charging excessive ATM transaction fees to the detriment of consumers. “Section 104 of the of the Act asserts the supremacy of the Act over ‘the provisions of any other law’, such as the CBN Act. The only exception to the provision is the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended]. “Section 127(1) of the Act also prohibits the CBN from making any policy or providing “any services at…

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