Economy
CBN To Monitor Dubious Bank Customers
By Dipo Olowookere
Bank customers involved in fraudulent activities will now be placed under the radar of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The country’s apex bank disclosed yesterday that it was working out regulatory framework that would enable it either blacklist these set of bank customers or put them on watch-list across the banking industry.
Speaking at the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) Bi-Monthly Forum in Lagos, CBN Director, Banking and Payment Systems Department, Mr Dipo Fatokun, said the Bank Verification Number (BVN) it recently introduced would be used to achieve this.
Mr Fatokun explained that the BVN involves capturing of customers’ physiological or behavioural attributes like fingerprint, signature among others which is coordinated by the CBN and banks in collaboration with the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS).
At the event hosted by the CBN, Mr Fatokun, who spoke on the theme ‘Recent Developments in the Electronic Payments System and Implications for Consumers of Electronic Payment Services’ disclosed that data from the apex bank showed that although e-fraud rate in terms of value dropped by 63 per cent last year, after the BVN introduction and improved collaboration among banks via the fraud desks, the total fraud volume rose significantly by 683 per cent within the year compared to 2014 figures.
He further disclosed that Nigeria experienced a total of 3,500 cyber-attacks with 70 per cent success rate and loss of $450 million within the last one year mainly through cross channel fraud, data theft, email spooling, phishing, shoulder surfing and underground websites.
“I want to assure you that the BVN has assisted us a lot in the banking system. It has assisted us to check frauds, and we are working on a framework, that will enable us if not to blacklist customers, because of some legal implications, but at least to watch-list a customer that is identified to have been fraudulent, or have done what he is not supposed to do across the banking sector,” he said.
He said the PSV 2020 strategy is aimed at providing a roadmap for efficient payments system infrastructure that would be nationally utilized and internationally recognized.
“The payments system plays a very crucial role in any economy, being the channel through which financial resources flow from one segment of the economy to the other. In setting out the objectives of the National Payments System (NPS), the goal is to ensure that the system is available without interruption, meet as far as possible, all users’ needs, and operate at minimum risk and reasonable cost,” he said.
He added that the BVN project is jointly undertaken by the CBN in collaboration with the Bankers Committee and remains a strategy of ensuring effectiveness of Know Your Customer (KYC) principles.
“Each Bank customer is given a unique identity across the Nigerian Banking Industry, including Nigeria bank customers in Diaspora,” he said.
The CBN Director said the number of BVN linked to customers’ accounts as at August 23, this year was 36.7 million while the total number of individual customers in the banks was reported as 59.9 million as at the same date.
“Any bank customer resident in Nigeria without a BVN would be deemed to have inadequate KYC while effort is on-going to ensure that customers of Other Financial Institutions (OFIs) such as Microfinance Banks (MFBs) & Primary Mortgage Institutions (PMIs) are brought into the system begin to get their BVNs,” he said.
Mr Fatokun said the e-Payment remains an initiative of CBN under the Payments System Vision 2020 as part of the overall FSS 2020 Strategy adding that one of the CBN mandates is the promotion of a sound financial system (Section 2 (d) of the CBN Act 2007).
He disclosed that Section 47(2) of the CBN Act 2007, stipulates that the CBN shall continue to promote and facilitate the development of efficient and effective systems for the settlement of transactions, including the development of electronic payment systems, adding that the promotion of a sound financial system entails active support for the effectiveness, efficiency and systemic safety of the payments system.
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By Dipo Olowookere
The level of activity at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) shrank last week after a turnover of 4.373 billion shares worth N97.783 billion in 110,736 deals compared with the 6.617 billion shares worth N113.224 billion executed in 109,590 deals in the preceding week.
It was observed that the financial services industry led the activity chart by volume with 2.252 billion units sold for N47.204 billion in 44,808 deals, contributing 51.49 per cent and 48.27 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
The ICT sector traded 1.118 billion equities worth N13.148 billion in 10,413 deals, and the energy segment exchanged 233.891 million stocks valued at N4.726 billion in 7,515 deals.
eTranzact, Access Holdings, and FCMB accounted for 1.921 billion shares worth N22.218 billion in 9,558 deals, contributing 43.93 per cent and 22.72 per cent to the total trading volume and value apiece.
The best-performing equity was Morison Industries with a price appreciation of 32.49 per cent to sell for N4.69, Mecure Industries expanded by 27.35 per cent to N37.95, Japaul gained 26.27 per cent to finish at N2.66, Sovereign Trust Insurance improved by 17.24 per cent to N3.40, and PZ Cussons chalked up 16.19 per cent to settle at N47.00.
On the flip side, Eterna lost 14.93 per cent to quote at N30.20, UAC Nigeria declined by 14.26 per cent to N83.00, eTranzact shed 10.00 per cent to end at N12.60, Transcorp Hotels depreciated by 9.95 per cent to N155.60, and Chellarams crumbled by 9.90 per cent to N13.20.
In the five-day trading week, 49 equities appreciated versus 55 equities a week earlier, 41 shares depreciated versus 29 share in the previous week, and 57 stocks closed flat versus 63 stocks in the preceding week.
At the close of business for the week last Friday, the All-Share Index (ASI) was up by 1.63 per cent to 149,433.26 points and the market capitalisation rose by 1.64 per cent to N95.264 trillion.
In the same vein, all other indices finished higher apart from the banking, AFR Div. Yield, MERI Growth, MERI Value, energy, sovereign bond, and commodity indices, which depreciated by 0.12 per cent, 0.75 per cent, 1.07 per cent, 0.27 per cent, 0.13 per cent, 2.02 per cent, and 0.49 per cent, respectively.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has issued a statement providing further clarifications following comments and reports on the recent memorandum of understanding between Nigeria and France on taxation.
The MoU, signed on December 10, 2025, at the French Embassy in Abuja by the chairman of FIRS, Mr Zacch Adedeji and French Ambassador, Mr Marc Fonbaustier, on behalf of France’s Direction Générale des Finances Publiques (DGFiP), focuses on key areas, including digital transformation, workforce development, information exchange, transfer pricing, and tackling base erosion and profit shifting.
However, the MoU has been met with resistance from opposition coalition party African Democratic Congress (ADC) as well as Northern elders, which both raised serious questions about transparency, national sovereignty and the safety of Nigerian consumers’ data.
In response, the tax authority, which will become known as Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS) from next year, emphasised that the deal does not grant France access to Nigerian taxpayer data, digital systems, or any element of the country’s operational infrastructure.
“All existing Nigerian laws on data protection, cybersecurity, and sovereignty remain fully applicable and strictly enforced. The NRS, like its predecessor, FIRS, places the highest premium on national security and maintains rigorous standards for the protection of all taxpayer information.”
It said similar MoUs are signed by tax administrations around the world to promote collaboration, knowledge sharing, and the adoption of global best practices.
“The DGFIP is among the world’s most advanced tax authorities, with over a century of institutional experience and deep expertise in digital transformation, taxpayer services, governance, and public finance.
“This partnership simply enables Nigeria to learn from that experience. It is advisory, non-intrusive, and entirely under Nigeria’s control.
“Contrary to misconceptions, the MoU does not displace local technology providers, FIRS and the emerging Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) continue to work closely with Nigerian innovators such as NIBSS, Interswitch, Paystack, and Flutterwave. The MoU does not include the provision of technical services; it is limited to knowledge sharing, institutional strengthening, workforce development, policy support, and best-practice guidance.
“We welcome robust public engagement on tax reforms, but such conversations must reflect the actual content and purpose of the agreement. Rather than undermining Nigeria’s sovereignty, this MoU strengthens it by helping to build a modern, capable, globally competitive tax administration one firmly in command of its systems, data, and strategic direction.
“FIRS remains committed to transparency, professionalism and partnership that advance Nigeria’s long-term economic development,” it said in a statement.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has issued permits to 28 companies under Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP), a scheme that aims to end routine gas flaring to cut carbon emissions and use some of the gas to generate power.
Gas flaring is the controlled burning of natural gas that is released during oil extraction. The initiative marks a major step toward ending flaring and monetising wasted gas.
The projects could capture 250 to 300 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of gas currently flared, cut about 6 million tonnes of CO₂ annually, and unlock nearly 3 gigawatts of power generation potential, an NGFCP document showed.
Nigeria expects the initiative to attract up to $2 billion in investment and create more than 100,000 jobs. It could also produce 170,000 metric tonnes of LPG annually, providing clean cooking access for 1.4 million households.
The permits follow a competitive bid round that awarded 49 flare sites to 42 bidders after the programme was restructured post-COVID-19 and the Petroleum Industry Act.
Speaking on this, Mr Gbenga Komolafe, head of the NUPRC, during the presentation of the certificates to the 28 companies said, “The NGFCP is a pillar in our quest to eliminate routine flaring, reduce emissions, and enhance Nigeria’s global credibility in energy transition commitments.”
The programme aligns with Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan and aims to turn flare gas from an environmental liability into an economic asset.
The 28 companies have signed key agreements, including Connection, Milestone Development and Gas Sales Agreements, and now qualify for permits to access flare gas.
Producers will benefit from reduced liabilities, improved Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance and alignment with the government’s decarbonisation agenda.
Development partners, including Power Africa, KPMG, World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Reduction initiative, USAID and financiers, have supported the programme with technical and commercial frameworks.
Mr Komolafe said while the permits mark a milestone, engineering, construction and financing must begin in earnest.
“The real work starts now,” the official added. “This programme will create economic, industrial and environmental value while strengthening Nigeria’s energy transition.”
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