Nigerian Open Banking - The Legal Framework All Banks and FinTechs Need to Know

Nigerian Open Banking: The Legal Framework All Banks and FinTechs Need to Know

Banking and Finance Law, Business Advisory, Corporate & Commercial, Financial Technology (FinTech), Innovation and Technology, Startups and MSME Law

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) framework on open banking has now transitioned from a policy document to a phased implementation. Nigeria has a comprehensive history of open banking; with the Central Bank issuing Africa’s first Open Banking Regulatory framework in February 2021, followed by the Operational Guidelines in March 2023. In April 2025, the CBN provided August 2025 as the launch date for an operation that would have seen Nigeria emerge as the first African country to launch national open banking. However, the initial launch date was deferred as the CBN stressed that a wholly automated system that offers robust data protection and stringent consumer protection mechanisms should first be in place.

Corporate Restructuring in Nigeria - What To Do & How to Do It Right

Corporate Restructuring in Nigeria: When to Do It, Why It Matters, and How to Do It Right

Business Advisory, Business, Entrepreneurs, Business, Small Business, Corporate & Commercial, Corporate Restructuring and Insolvency, Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), Startups and MSME Law

The legal process for restructuring is the most significant for a Nigerian company, and arguably, one that is the most often initiated incorrectly. Those who get restructuring right treat it as a thoughtful, planned process – one with clear commercial objectives and the benefit of legal advice that understands both the relevant legal and regulatory framework, and the desired business outcome. Those who get it wrong approach restructuring reactively: when time-critical, after a term sheet is signed or in the midst of a shareholder dispute that is already causing damage to the relationships the restructuring is intended to resolve. Below are the five typical triggers that can give rise to a restructuring in Nigeria: what options are available and what mistakes are the costliest when dealing with them. Please note that all references to stamp duties and other related fiscal levies apply in accordance with the Nigeria Tax Act (NTA) 2025, effective January 1, 2026.

What Nigerian Employers & Employees Should Know About the Law

What Every Nigerian Employers & Employees Should Know About Employment Law

Business Advisory, Business, Careers, Business, Entrepreneurs, Business, Small Business, Corporate & Commercial, Labour and Employment, Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)

On 1st May, Nigeria joined over 160 countries in celebrating International Workers’ Day, a public holiday that offers not just celebration, but a time for reflection. It is also a reminder of how wide the gap is between Nigerian labour law as written and the realities in many Nigerian workplaces. – This gap is not merely academic, but has real commercial consequences. For businesses that are unaware they are being targeted for unfair dismissal claims, for employees whose rights are not known, and for employers who think a one-page offer letter is sufficient for an employment contract, this article examines both sides of the employment relationship, because Workers’ Day is not about one without the other.

DFI Lending in Nigeria: What Every Borrower Must Know Before Signing

DFI Lending in Nigeria: What Every Borrower Must Know Before Signing

Business Advisory, Corporate & Commercial, Financial Services, Financial Technology (FinTech), Project Finance, Startups and MSME Law

Lending from development finance institutions such as the International Finance Corporation, African Development Bank, Proparco, and German Development Finance Institution, DEG, and other multilateral and bilateral development finance institutions is becoming more accessible to Nigerian businesses across sectors. There may be longer tenors, attractive pricing, or even a strategic partnership that adds credibility and capital. However, borrowers should be aware that DFI loans are not commercial bank loans. They come with conditions, obligations and consequences that many Nigerian borrowers are not prepared for when they enter the facility agreement. In this article, we identify the five most critical areas where DFI lending most often cause problems for Nigerian borrowers and what every borrower should know before signing.

Embedded Finance in Nigeria – What Every Bank-Fintech Partnership Needs

Corporate & Commercial, Financial Services, Financial Technology (FinTech), Project Finance

By integrating financial services products into non-financial platforms and business models, embedded finance is changing the Nigerian financial services landscape faster than the regulatory and legal frameworks that govern it. Several banks are distributing financial products through digital channels using FinTech. The fintechs are leveraging bank APIs to deliver services that were once available only to licensed financial houses. Retailers, logistics companies and software companies are integrating payments, lending and insurance into their customer experiences.
This has huge commercial potential. Legal risks are also real and not adequately managed in most bank-finance partnership arrangements we review. Five key legal requirements that every embedded finance partnership in Nigeria must meet before the arrangement goes live are laid out in this article.

Five Important Contract Clauses Every Nigerian Business Should Audit Now

Five Important Contract Clauses Every Nigerian Business Should Audit Now

Business Advisory, Business, Entrepreneurs, Business, Sales, Business, Small Business, Corporate & Commercial, Startups and MSME Law

Most Nigerian business owners know their contracts need attention. Yet, only a few have read them recently. There is a gap between what a contract actually says and what a business truly needs. In terms of scale, risk exposure, and commercial relationships, it grows wider every year the document is left unreviewed. This article examines five clauses that we consistently find in Nigerian business contracts. Each of them has real commercial consequences if it fails. All of them are fixable if the problem is identified before the dispute, the loss, or the failed deal.

World IP Day 2026 Your Nigerian Brand Is Not Protected Until You Have Done This

World IP Day 2026: Your Nigerian Brand Is Not Protected Until You Have Done This

Business Advisory, Corporate & Commercial, Intellectual Property, Startups and MSME Law

Every week, we hear a story about a Nigerian business owner who has just discovered that someone else has registered their brand name as a trademark. Or that the logo their designer created is legally owned by the designer, not the business. Or that the technology they licensed from a foreign company cannot be enforced because it was never registered with NOTAP.
In every case, the business owner believed they were protected. They registered their business name with the Corporate Affairs Commission. They had a contract with their designer where they signed a license agreement but none of that was enough. And the cost of fixing it where feasible is always higher than the cost of getting it right in the first place.
On World IP Day, this article explains what it actually takes to protect a brand and its intellectual property in Nigeria in 2026.

Earth Day 2026 What Environmental Compliance Means for Nigerian Businesses

Earth Day 2026: What Environmental Compliance Means for Nigerian Businesses

Business Advisory, Business, Small Business, Corporate & Commercial

Earth Day is a global reminder that environmental responsibility is no longer an ethical or reputational concern for businesses, it is a commercial one. For Nigerian businesses seeking international investment, DFI financing, or partnerships with multinational corporates, environmental compliance has become a fundamental prerequisite. For businesses in sectors with huge physical or operational footprints, it is a regulatory obligation backed by meaningful enforcement powers.

Nigerian Lending - Perfection. Banks and Borrowers Keep Making These 5 Mistakes

Nigerian Lending – Perfection. Banks and Borrowers Keep Making These 5 Mistakes

Banking and Finance Law, Business Advisory, Business, Careers, Business, Small Business, Corporate & Commercial, Corporate Restructuring and Insolvency, Financial Services, Financial Technology (FinTech), Project Finance, Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), Startups and MSME Law

There is no loan facility stronger than the security that underlies it. Any bank that doesn’t properly secure its assets is not a secured creditor. And a borrower that does not understand its perfection obligations might find that its representations to its lender were false. These are five security perfection mistakes we see often and every party involved in a Nigerian credit transaction needs to know about them.

CBN Fintech Licensing 2026 - It's The Nigerian Founder Who Keeps Confusing The World With Their 3-Licenses

CBN Fintech Licensing 2026 – It’s The Nigerian Founder Who Keeps Confusing The World With Their 3-Licenses

Business Advisory, Business, Entrepreneurs, Corporate & Commercial, Financial Technology (FinTech)

Most FinTech founders are aware they need a Central Bank of Nigeria license. But very few know which one to apply for – and the difference between applying for the wrong license and the right one is huge. A rejected application, wasted time, and regulatory exposure – and sometimes even a breach of existing commitments to clients and investors – are all examples of wasted time and regulatory exposure.

And in 2026, the revised payments framework makes the distinctions between license categories easier to understand and the consequences of operating in the wrong category more severe. Here are the three most commonly confused license categories for Nigerian FinTechs and the key questions to ask when choosing one.