Senate has passed a bill seeking to strengthen the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) regulatory oversight of major financial technology companies and other non-bank financial institutions whose operations could pose risks to the country’s financial stability.
Gatekeepers News reports that the proposed amendment to the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA), 2020, was passed for third reading on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, following clause-by-clause consideration at plenary.
The bill, SB. 959, seeks to empower the CBN to identify, designate and register qualifying fintech operators as Systemically Important Institutions (SIIs), subjecting them to enhanced regulatory supervision.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, Senator Adetokunbo Abiru, presented the committee’s report during plenary presided over by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Abiru explained that major mobile money operators, payment service banks, digital wallet providers, digital lenders and switching companies now handle significant volumes of financial transactions and serve millions of Nigerians.
He noted that the growing influence of these institutions required stronger regulatory measures to address potential threats to the country’s financial system.
Under the proposed legislation, the CBN would determine which institutions qualify for the designation based on factors such as their size, transaction volumes, customer base and connections with the wider financial system.
The bill also provides for stricter corporate governance standards, cybersecurity safeguards, technology-risk management and operational resilience.
Other provisions include regular stress tests, data-integrity assessments, mandatory regulatory reporting and supervisory access to the operational systems of designated institutions.
It further seeks to strengthen beneficial ownership disclosures, improve transparency in corporate ownership structures and introduce sanctions for institutions that fail to comply with regulatory requirements.
During consultations on the proposed amendment, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) supported stronger oversight but stressed the need for clear coordination with the CBN to prevent overlapping regulatory responsibilities.
Other institutions that supported the bill included the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and several financial institutions.
The legislation is expected to strengthen supervision of major players in Nigeria’s growing digital financial services sector and address risks associated with their increasing influence on the country’s financial system.
The bill had earlier passed second reading in December 2025 before being referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions for further consideration.
