Economy
ABCON Urges Members to Shun Gmail, Yahoo
Over 4,500 Licenced Bureau de Change (BDCs) operators have been advised to stop use of Yahoo and Gmail for official communication especially to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
This advice was given by the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), which said its members can create or reactivate over 4,000 official/corporate emails on its platform.
President of the association, Mr Aminu Gwadabe, during a chat with financial journalists in Lagos, said the advice followed a circular from the Other Financial Institutions (OFIs) Department of CBN, directing all OFIs including BDCs to adopt corporate e-mails for their communication with the apex bank.
“We are also glad to inform the gathering that over 1,000 BDCs in the South-west have so been integrated with the new CBN Forex return rendition platform.
“In due course, our members in the other zones shall soon be integrated to achieve real time on line return rendition to CBN from the comfort of their offices.
“ABCON has created over 4,000 official emails on its platform, www.abconng.org, for its members to enhance compliance,” the ABCON chief said.
Also during the chat, Mr Gwadabe said all BDC operators now have opportunity to re-active their official e-mails on the ABCON platform.
“ABCON advises all members to reactivate their emails on the automation platform to enable them comply with the CBN circular. All members are to visit national and zonal secretariats for further enquiry and any assistance where necessary,” he added.
The ABCON boss said the rising threats of cyber-security attacks on the financial system means that all stakeholders, including BDCs must be proactive to protect their data, businesses, reputation and overall operations from cyber attackers.
He said that e-mails have remained the weakest link on cyber-attacks and BDCs under his leadership will continue to upgrade their IT systems to ensure that they are ahead of the cyber criminals.
Continuing, he said that banks, OFIs, digital wallets and remittance players are prime targets for cyber criminals seeking quick monetization of stolen credentials.
“It is therefore important that we do not relent in our efforts at protecting this space and increasing public confidence in financial system,” he said.
MrGwadabe backed the OFIs Department of CBN on the policy shift, agreeing with the regulator that most cyber-attacks involve the use of web or internet based emails to send malicious software or viruses that compromise the data and IT systems of organizations with the attendant negative impact on the confidentiality, integrity and availability of critical information assets.
He urged OFIs with corporate e-mails to comply with the CBN directive by making regulatory submissions and communicate with the regulator via e-mails as the apex bank has restricted all web-based e-mails from its domain, adding that compliance is compulsory.
Mr Gwadabe advised BDC’s to comply swiftly with the CBN policy on corporate e-mails, adding that cyber-attack that can be launched through webmail and operators that are yet to integrate with the corporate e-mail may be at risk of losing huge capital or reputation, should there be system attacks.
He explained that the need to keep BDCs’ IT systems in line with global best practices prompted ABCON to launch its Live Run Automation Portal, which integrates operators’ IT with those of Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS), Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to improve the level of compliance of the BDCs with set regulations.
Mr Gwadabe said the world is going digital, and BDC operators under his leadership are committed to staying ahead of the competition by deploying time-tested technology to deliver effective services to customers, while also keeping an eye on the IT systems risks prevalent in today’s world.
The ABCON chief said the group had fully upgraded its Information Communication Technology (ICT) platforms, to achieve full digitisation of BDCs operations in line with its goal of sustaining transparent operation and prompt rendition of weekly returns to regulatory agencies.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Senate has passed a bill to repeal and re-enact the law establishing the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), paving the way for the regulatory agency to be renamed the Insurance Regulatory Commission (IRC).
The legislation, titled the Insurance Regulatory Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2026, was passed after the Senate considered and adopted the report of its committee on banking, insurance and other financial institutions.
The Chairman of the committee, Mr Adetokunbo Abiru, the senator representing Lagos East, who presented the report, stated that the proposed legislation was necessary because the existing National Insurance Commission Act of 1997 had become outdated and no longer reflected the realities of Nigeria’s evolving insurance industry or global regulatory standards.
According to the Senate, the decision to change the Commission’s name was informed by the need to eliminate confusion associated with the existing designation and to better reflect the institution’s regulatory mandate within Nigeria’s insurance industry.
The bill also provides legal protection for the commission and its officers against adverse claims arising from the lawful execution of their statutory duties.
However, he noted that the commission’s enabling law had become obsolete, exposing significant regulatory gaps that required urgent legislative intervention.
‘The current National Insurance Commission Act 1997 is outdated and does not adequately address the emerging economic growth, needs and development of the insurance business,” the lawmaker said.
He explained that the new legislation seeks to strengthen the independence of the commission by empowering it to make regulatory decisions without undue influence in the country’s insurance sector.
According to him, the bill also enhances the commission’s authority to exchange information and collaborate with domestic and international regulatory bodies, issue regulations, guidelines, standards and directives on insurance-related matters, and intervene more effectively in financially distressed insurance companies to protect policyholders and preserve financial stability.
This marks yet another move to strengthen the country’s insurance sector following the enactment of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) of 2025 and the industry-wide recapitalisation exercise, which will wrap up by July 31.
By Adedapo Adesanya
About 143 companies that successfully passed the technical and prequalification stages of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s (NUPRC) 2025 Licensing Round will, today, compete for 50 oil and gas blocks at the commercial bid conference in Abuja, the final stage in the allocation process for the assets.
The commission said only the prequalified companies have been invited to attend the event, which will hold at the Conference Centre of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, stressing that participation is strictly by invitation.
The commercial bid conference will determine the successful bidders for oil and gas assets located across Nigeria’s producing and frontier basins.
The 50 blocks comprise 16 onshore blocks and 18 shallow water blocks in the Niger Delta, one deep offshore block, three onshore blocks in the Benin Basin, four in the Anambra Basin, four in the Chad Basin, and four in the Benue Trough.
According to the commission, the winning bids will be determined through a transparent evaluation process based on clearly defined commercial parameters. These include the signature bonus offered by bidders, the proposed work programme commitment and the level of performance security provided. The final selection will be based on a weighted technical and commercial score.
The licensing round is being conducted under the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which requires a transparent and competitive process for the award of petroleum assets.
NUPRC had announced the commencement of the 2025 Licensing Round on November 11, 2025, before opening the online bid portal on December 1, 2025, to enable interested companies to register and participate in the exercise.
To ensure prospective investors fully understood the requirements, the commission organised a pre-bid conference on January 14, 2026, at Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos. The event provided detailed explanations on the licensing guidelines and bidding procedures to registered participants and other stakeholders.
Registration and submission of prequalification documents closed on February 27, 2026, while the prequalification evaluation was completed on March 16, 2026.
NUPRC disclosed that 286 companies initially submitted applications for prequalification.
Following the evaluation process, 196 companies were cleared to participate in the technical and commercial bid stages.
The prequalified 143 companies eventually submitted a total of 200 bids for the available oil and gas blocks. These companies are now set to compete at the commercial bid conference, where the financial offers will be opened and evaluated to determine the eventual winners.
The licensing round is expected to attract fresh investment into Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector, boost exploration activities across both producing and frontier basins, increase crude oil and gas reserves, and support the country’s drive to grow production and government revenue.
It also underscores the regulator’s commitment to implementing a transparent, competitive and investor-friendly licensing regime under the Petroleum Industry Act.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has retained all key monetary policy parameters following the conclusion of its two-day meeting on July 21, 2026, on Tuesday, maintaining its tight monetary policy stance to curb inflation and support macroeconomic stability.
According to the Governor of the apex bank, Mr Yemi Cardoso, who chaired the committee, the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), which serves as the benchmark interest rate, remains at 26.50 per cent. The MPC also retained the asymmetric corridor around the MPR at +50 basis points and -450 basis points.
In addition, the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) for commercial banks was left unchanged at 45.00 per cent, while the CRR for merchant banks remains at 16.00 per cent. The committee also retained the CRR on non-Treasury Single Account (Non-TSA) public sector deposits at 75.00 per cent, with the liquidity ratio at 30.00 per cent.
The decision reflects the apex bank’s continued commitment to containing inflationary pressures through a restrictive monetary policy while safeguarding the resilience of Nigeria’s financial system amid ongoing macroeconomic adjustments.
By keeping all policy tools unchanged, the MPC signalled its intention to continue managing excess liquidity in the banking sector and maintain stability in financial markets.
The move is also expected to provide greater policy certainty for investors and businesses monitoring the country’s monetary policy direction.
The latest decision also means borrowing costs are likely to remain elevated in the near term as the central bank continues to prioritise price stability over monetary easing.
Analysts had expected the CBN committee to retain the rate after Nigeria’s headline inflation came in at 15.91 per cent as of June 2026, marking a slight decline from 15.93 per cent in May.
However, even as overall price growth has moderated significantly compared to previous periods, food inflation remains a persistent challenge, accelerating to 17.52 per cent in June.
