On 10th December 2020, the Central Bank of Nigeria
("CBN") issued a Circular dated 9th December 2020 on a
new licence categorisation for payments system in Nigeria
("Circular"). It is instructive to mention that the CBN
issued an exposure draft on the licensing regime for payment
service providers in 2018, however, the substantive circular was
not issued.
The approval delay over the past couple of years created fear
and apprehension for existing market players, not leaving out
potential investors in the Nigerian payments industry. Certainly,
this Circular will bring a huge relief to all concerned, as it now
provides the much-needed clarity on licence categories for
participants and applicable minimum capital requirements. It's
also a very welcome development to see that the high minimum
capital thresholds previously set out in the exposure draft have
been significantly reduced for some of the categories.
