Nigeria’s presidency has identified Regulatory Technology as a foundational instrument for extending financial services to underserved populations and constructing the trusted digital infrastructure required to support the country’s economic transformation ambitions.
Speaking at the 2026 RegTech Africa Conference and Expo held at the State House in Abuja, the Technical Adviser to the President on Economic and Financial Inclusion described the technology as the bridge between innovation and accountability, capable of reshaping the relationship between financial institutions, regulators, and ordinary citizens.
He argued that artificial intelligence, blockchain, digital identity systems, and real-time analytics would collectively improve fraud detection, strengthen consumer protection, and lower the barriers that currently prevent millions of Nigerians from accessing formal financial services. The Tinubu administration, he said, views digital trust, transparency, and inclusive infrastructure as central pillars of its economic goals.
The presidential adviser emphasised that the country’s ability to reach its target of becoming a one-trillion-dollar economy by 2030 would require more than policy statements. It would demand the construction of systems that are both efficient and equitable, supported by stronger partnerships among regulators, financial institutions, technology firms, and development partners.
The Central Bank of Nigeria governor, represented at the event, said the institution’s objective was not to constrain innovation but to create conditions in which it could develop responsibly, supported by clear rules, resilient infrastructure, effective oversight, and a deliberate commitment to inclusion. He noted that Nigeria’s expanding digital financial ecosystem had brought significant benefits but had also introduced risks including cyber threats, fraud, operational vulnerabilities, and data privacy concerns.
The conference organisers presented striking figures to illustrate the scale of the challenge and opportunity. More than 900 million African adults still lack formal financial accounts despite mobile money accounts surpassing 800 million across the continent in 2024. Nigeria alone accounts for more than 70 million active mobile money and digital wallet users, and more than 10 billion instant payment transactions valued above 1,000 trillion naira were processed in the country in 2025.
Yet the same rapid growth has exposed dangerous vulnerabilities. Fraud and financial crime losses across Africa’s digital payment ecosystem run into billions of dollars annually, while cross-border remittance costs remain among the highest in the world, exceeding eight percent on average. Addressing these challenges through regulatory technology, conference organisers argued, represents both an economic necessity and a development opportunity of enormous scale.
