Banking
CBN Warns Against Misinterpretation of Policy Guidelines
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made some clarifications regarding the Monetary, Credit, Foreign Trade, And Exchange Policy Guidelines For Fiscal Years 2024 – 2025 document earlier published on Tuesday, September 17, 2024.
It disclosed this in a statement published on its website on Friday.
The apex bank revoked the document, saying that the move was to minimise risks of any further misrepresentation or misinterpretation, resulting in confusion among stakeholders.
“The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to certain instances of misinterpretation or misrepresentation of its biennial publication on Monetary, Credit, Foreign Trade, and Exchange Policy Guidelines published on September 17, 2024. In response, the CBN has temporarily withdrawn the document to minimise the risk of any further misrepresentation.
“As is stated explicitly in the document to guide stakeholders, the CBN reiterates that the publication is a compilation of previously issued policies and guidelines issued by the Bank up to a cut-off date, typically December 31 of the relevant year.”
It noted that the current document is intended to achieve certain objectives, including being a single reference source for the ease and convenience of stakeholders, a valid compilation of policies, directives, and guidelines for adjudication in conflict situations involving stakeholders, and additional clarification of policies and guidelines.
“As a compendium of previously issued policies and guidelines, the provisions are applicable only to the extent that there have been no updates or revisions to the guidelines and policies contained therein. This is stated explicitly in the document to guide stakeholders.
“In line with prior editions, the most recent publication (January 2024) contains policies and guidelines issued by the Bank up to 31st December 2023, some of which will remain relevant during the period 2024 – 2025. However, several others may cease to apply owing to revisions or updates that become applicable in the aftermath of its publication.
“This is clearly stated in the document as follows: The Guidelines may be adjusted by the CBN without prior notice, to address new developments in the domestic and global economies in the period. However, such amendments shall be communicated to the relevant institutions/ stakeholders in supplementary circulars (Page 8, Paragraph 1).
“The publication further provides the public with avenues for obtaining clarifications on the whole or any part of the document on pages 147 and 148.
“In the light of these clarifications, we ask stakeholders to note the following:
“Some recent media publications referencing aspects of the Guidelines refer to policy positions of the Bank issued prior to 31st December 2023, which have changed in the light of revisions and updates in 2024. One example is the Cyber Security Levy, which was suspended in May 2024, superseding the circular reported in the Guidelines.
“Certain technical aspects of the Guidelines have been widely misreported and misrepresented. For example, reports have mistakenly sought to link the fuel subsidy removal to external reserves. Such reports essentially missed the analytical basis for the original statement, which was intended to observe a potential risk that was to be mitigated by the policy. More recently, policies of the Bank around the Naira exchange rate and those of the fiscal authorities have positively altered the outlook of the subject in question.
“In summary, the Guidelines must primarily be viewed as a record of policies, circulars and directives issued by the Bank up to the end of 2023. They are not new directives and should not be reported as such.
“The Bank will continue to provide clear monetary policy direction and advice for the overall good of the Economy. We urge all stakeholders to seek clarification of information about the Bank before publishing.”.
The release of the document spurred some reports, excluding Business Post, which interpreted that the lender will sustain its Ways and Means Advances to the federal government at a 5 per cent limit for the fiscal years 2024-2025.
This is contrary to a bill passed by the National Assembly which raised the maximum borrowing percentage in the Act from five per cent to ten per cent.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A $250 million financing facility to support the acquisition of about 40 per cent equity in ND Western Limited from Petrolin Trading Limited has been secured by Aradel Energy Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Aradel Holdings Plc.
The funding package was facility for the energy firm by Standard Bank, which comprises Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited, Stanbic IBTC Bank Limited, and the Standard Bank of South Africa Limited.
The facility, Business Post gathered, was structured to support Aradel Energy’s strategic growth agenda, the refinancing of existing loan facilities, and the funding of increased production from the company’s existing asset base.
Aradel Energy is the operator of the Ogbele and Omerelu onshore marginal fields, as well as OPL 227 in shallow water terrain.
Prior to the transaction, Aradel Energy held a 41.67 per cent equity interest in ND Western, and following the completion of the acquisition, its shareholding in ND Western has increased to 81.67 per cent.
ND Western holds a 45 per cent participating interest in OML 34 and a 50 per cent equity interest in Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, the operator of the Renaissance Joint Venture and a 30 per cent owner of one of Nigeria’s largest and most strategic energy portfolios.
As a result of the transaction, Aradel Energy’s indirect equity interest in Renaissance has increased to 53.3 per cent, significantly strengthening the company’s upstream position and long-term value creation potential.
Standard Bank acted as Global Coordinator and Bookrunner, leading the structuring, execution, and funding of the facility, affirming its deep sectoral expertise and reinforces its position as a leading financier in Africa’s energy industry.
This transaction reinforces Standard Bank Group’s commitment to providing strategic capital to clients as they execute on their transformative growth objectives.
By delivering tailored financing solutions that enable sustainable value creation, the Bank remains a trusted partner to leading corporations across Africa’s evolving energy landscape.
“As Aradel Energy consolidates its position as one of Nigeria’s leading oil and gas companies, Stanbic IBTC Bank is proud to serve as a trusted long-term partner supporting the company’s growth ambitions,” the Executive Director for Corporate and Transaction Banking at Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr Eric Fajemisin, stated.
Also commenting, the Regional Head of Energy and Infrastructure Finance for West Africa at Standard Bank, Mr Cody Aduloju, said, “The transaction illustrates Standard Bank’s ability to deliver large-scale, tailored funding solutions and further demonstrates our support to the fast-growing indigenous companies of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.”
The chief executive of Aradel Holdings, Mr Adegbite Falade, said, “The acquisition bolsters Aradel Energy’s competitive positioning across Nigeria’s oil and gas value chain and supports our commitment to strategic growth, asset optimisation, and enduring value creation. We are pleased to have partnered with Standard Bank, who supported us and delivered a fully funded solution under very tight timelines.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The operating licences of major financial technology (fintech) platforms like OPay and Moniepoint, have been upgraded to national by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Also upgraded by the banking sector regulator were PalmPay, Kuda Bank, and Paga after compliance with some regulatory requirements, allowing them to operate across Nigeria.
Speaking at annual conference of the Committee of Heads of Banks’ Operations in Lagos recently, the Director of the Other Financial Institutions Supervision Department of the CBN, Mr Yemi Solaja, said the licences were upwardly reviewed after the financial institutions met some requirements, including the Know-Your-Customer (KYC) policy.
“Institutions like Moniepoint MFB, Opay, Kuda Bank, and others have now been upgraded. In practice, their operations are already nationwide,” he said at the event.
The upgrade also reinforces financial inclusion, as fintechs and agent networks continue to play a pivotal role in providing access to banking and payments services, especially in rural and underserved areas.
The central bank executive stressed the importance of physical presence for customer support.
According to him, “Most of their customers operate in the informal sector. They need a clear point of contact if any issues arise,” to strengthen internal controls, and enhance customer service, particularly around KYC and anti-money laundering (AML) processes.
By Adedapo Adesanya
OneDosh, a fintech company focused on stablecoin-powered payments, has raised $3 million in pre-seed funding to develop infrastructure aimed at improving how individuals and businesses move money across borders.
The firm, co-founded in February 2025 by the trio of Mr Jackson Ukuevo, Mr Godwin Okoye, and Mr Babatunde Osinowo, was shaped by the founders’ firsthand experiences navigating blocked cards, frozen accounts, delayed international transfers, and currency restrictions while living and travelling globally. These challenges highlighted a consistent gap between the demand for seamless global payments and the systems available to support them.
Now, OneDosh operates in the United States and Nigeria, two active remittance corridors with strong demand for faster and more flexible payment solutions. Through our platform, users can transfer funds from the U.S. to Nigeria, hold value in stablecoins, and spend using stablecoin-powered cards compatible with Apple Pay and Google Pay, subject to network and regional availability.
Commenting on OneDosh’s mission, Mr Ukuevo said, “Millions of people are locked out of efficient cross-border payments because legacy systems are slow, expensive, and restrictive. OneDosh is building the infrastructure to change that, starting with the U.S.-Nigeria corridor and expanding from there. This funding helps us turn stablecoins into practical payment solutions for real people and businesses.”
“Beyond our current consumer-facing products, we are building payment infrastructure designed to connect wallets, cards, and markets into a single programmable system. Our approach focuses on enabling compliant, real-world use cases for stablecoins, particularly in regions where traditional cross-border payment systems remain costly or inefficient,” he added.
OneDosh’s founding team brings experience from organisations such as ZeroHash, Plaid, and Amazon, with backgrounds spanning payments infrastructure, compliance operations, and large-scale product development.
The pre-seed funding will be used to expand into additional payment corridors, deepen liquidity partnerships, and support senior team hires. These efforts are intended to boost capacity to support cross-border spending and settlement use cases as adoption of digital payment technologies continues to grow.
With the increasing interconnectedness of global commerce, OneDosh aims to contribute infrastructure designed to support faster, more accessible cross-border payments using stablecoins as a settlement layer.
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