The Senate on Thursday passed for second reading a bill aimed at overhauling the regulatory framework for Nigeria’s fast growing financial technology sector. The bill, sponsored by Senator Mukhail Adetokunbo Abiru of Lagos East and co-sponsored by members of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, seeks amendments to the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020 to allow for the designation, registration and stricter supervision of Systemically Important Institutions.
Leading the debate, Senator Abiru explained that the amendment became necessary due to the rapid evolution of technology driven financial services and emerging risks linked to big fintech operators. He highlighted that mobile money operators, payment service banks, digital lenders and switching companies now process large volumes of transactions and customer data, making them vital to commerce and financial inclusion.
Abiru stated that while BOFIA 2020 already gives the Central Bank of Nigeria the authority to identify systemically important institutions, the current law mainly focuses on traditional deposit money banks, leaving what he called a major regulatory gap.
The proposed amendment aims to empower the CBN to apply enhanced risk based supervision, establish a national registry for fintech companies, strengthen data sovereignty and improve consumer protection.
During the session, Senator Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan of Kogi Central stressed the importance of protecting Nigeria’s digital economy and young content creators. She noted the increasing role of social media as a source of employment for millions of youths and raised concerns over what she described as “a huge discrepancy” in earnings for Nigerian content creators when compared to those abroad, particularly on platforms like Facebook.
