Nigeria’s fast-growing fintech sector is calling for the creation of a National Fintech Committee to close regulatory gaps, promote innovation, and accelerate financial inclusion across the country.
The proposal, highlighted in a new Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) report titled “Shaping the Future of Fintech in Nigeria: Innovation, Inclusion and Integrity,” emphasizes structured collaboration between regulators and fintech operators.
According to the CBN report, “75% of respondents favour the creation of regular, high-trust engagement forums with regulators. 100% expressed willingness to collaborate through policy pilots, regulatory sandboxes, or working groups.”
This reflects a strong appetite among fintech companies for closer dialogue to tackle sector-wide challenges and shape practical regulatory frameworks.
Bridging the Regulatory Divide
The proposed National Fintech Committee mirrors the model of the Bankers’ Committee, a long-standing collaboration between the CBN and Nigerian bank executives.
That committee has successfully addressed systemic issues in the banking sector, including IT infrastructure and power challenges.
Similarly, the National Fintech Committee would serve as a structured platform for fintech operators and regulators to co-create policies, align on compliance expectations, and drive sector-specific innovation.
By adopting the Bankers’ Committee’s collaborative model, the CBN believes it could foster a more enabling environment for fintech growth and technological advancement.
Sector Challenges and Expansion Plans
The report revealed that 62.5% of Nigerian fintechs plan to expand into other African countries, underscoring a growing appetite for cross-border growth.
It noted that artificial intelligence (AI) and real-time payments are driving the next wave of fintech innovation, with firms leveraging these tools for fraud detection, credit scoring, and faster digital transactions.
“There is strong support for regulatory passporting frameworks to enable seamless, compliant expansion into peer African markets,” the report added.
Yet, Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem faces infrastructure bottlenecks, including low broadband penetration, limited access to digital ID systems, weak data-sharing networks, and fragmented open-data frameworks.
These constraints increase operational costs and slow product development.
Compliance Pressure and Delays
The report found that 87.5% of respondents believe compliance costs significantly affect their capacity to innovate. Furthermore, 82.5% said lengthy regulatory approval timelines delay product rollouts, with some fintechs spending over a year to introduce new solutions to the market.
CBN’s Proposed Frameworks
To address these issues, the CBN has introduced a series of frameworks aimed at simplifying regulatory engagement and improving transparency.
The Regulatory Engagement Platform (REP) will serve as a quarterly dialogue hub between regulators and fintechs, providing early feedback and resolving implementation challenges.
The Smart Licensing and Supervisory Gateway (SLSG) is a centralized digital portal for onboarding, licensing, and reporting, designed to reduce bureaucracy and improve multi-agency coordination.
The Open Finance Lab (OFL) will act as a sandbox for open banking and data-driven innovation, aligning with the CBN’s Financial Services Innovation Hub.
In addition, the Fintech Trust and Safety Charter (FTSC) aims to set voluntary standards for data protection, responsible AI, fair competition, and grievance handling.
The Fintech Credit Guarantee Window (FCGW) will de-risk MSME lending by fintechs, especially for women- and youth-led enterprises, by working with development finance institutions to expand credit access.
With Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem at a pivotal stage, the creation of a National Fintech Committee could help balance regulation with innovation, turning compliance into collaboration and growth into inclusion.
