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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a directive instructing four prominent fintech companies to halt the onboarding of new customers with immediate effect.
The affected fintech firms include OPay, Palmpay, Kuda Bank, and Moniepoint, all of which have been directed to comply with the CBN’s directive pending further investigations.
This move by the CBN follows ongoing investigations into allegations of illegal foreign exchange transactions involving accounts on these platforms.
A representative from two of the affected companies acknowledged the CBN’s directive, linking it directly to the allegations under investigation. However, they expressed concern that the directive might be misdirected, highlighting that the majority of the accounts implicated in the illicit forex transactions are associated with commercial banks, not fintech platforms.
“I can confirm that 90% of the accounts implicated in the illicit forex transactions are with commercial banks, and only 10% are with fintechs,” one source stated. “Why then has the CBN not extended this directive to the commercial banks? We face a widespread issue here, and targeting fintechs seems like an unfair focus on the more vulnerable targets.”
The directive from the CBN has raised questions about the rationale behind singling out fintech companies while the issue of illegal forex transactions involves a broader spectrum of financial institutions.
The affected fintech companies are currently cooperating with the CBN as investigations continue, while also seeking clarity on the reasons behind the directive.
