The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned that the country’s fintech industry—one of Africa’s fastest-growing remains dangerously dependent on foreign capital, leaving it vulnerable to global market volatility and currency risks.
In its 2025 Fintech Policy Insight Report, the apex bank noted that Nigerian startups raised $520 million in equity funding in 2024, a decline from $747 million in 2019 when Nigeria accounted for about 37% of all African startup investment.
While acknowledging the sector’s resilience amid global economic headwinds including sharp interest rate hikes in advanced economies in 2022 the CBN stressed the urgent need to develop domestic funding sources.
“These dynamics highlight the importance of developing domestic funding avenues, such as leveraging Nigeria’s capital markets, to reduce currency risk and sustain fintech growth,” the report stated.
CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso described Nigeria’s fintech evolution as “rapid and significant,” transforming from a handful of startups into one of Africa’s most vibrant innovation ecosystems.
“Even amid global economic headwinds, Nigerian fintech firms continued to attract investment and drive change. Today, with improved stability of our currency and domestic economy, it is clearer than ever that financial innovation can advance inclusion at scale,” Cardoso commented.
The report highlighted Nigeria’s leadership in digital financial infrastructure, with over 25% of all electronic transactions in Africa processed via real-time payment channels. The NIBSS Instant Payments (NIP) platform handled nearly 11 billion transactions in 2024—more than double the five billion recorded in 2022—positioning it among the world’s most mature and widely adopted systems.
However, the CBN identified key challenges, including high compliance costs and regulatory delays, which 87.5% of surveyed fintech firms said significantly hinder innovation. Another 62.5% expressed plans for regional expansion, with strong support for regulatory passporting frameworks to enable cross-border growth.
The central bank emphasized the need for stronger system integrity through enhanced anti-money laundering supervision, consumer protection, and regulatory modernisation to sustain investor confidence.
By prioritizing domestic funding, regulatory reforms, and innovation infrastructure, the CBN aims to position Nigeria not only as a fintech leader but also as a global rule-setter whose regulatory model offers lessons for other emerging high growth economies.
The report serves as a call to action for stakeholders to reduce external dependency and build a more resilient, self-sustaining fintech ecosystem capable of driving inclusive economic growth.
