Exclusive: One month after ban on onboarding new customers, fintechs and regulators talks continue
- Five Nigerian neobanks, including Moniepoint, OPay, Palmpay, Kuda, and Paga, are still unable to onboard new customers one month after a ban was imposed.
- The neobanks have been in talks with regulators, including the National Security Adviser, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and the Central Bank of Nigeria, to negotiate the conditions for resuming new account openings.
- The ban onboarding new customers has slowed the growth of these venture-funded neobanks and highlighted the weak lobbying power of the fintech industry.
The ban on onboarding new customers has had a negative impact on the growth of Nigerian neobanks, which have been unable to resume new account openings. The weak lobbying power of the fintech industry is evident in the ongoing negotiations with regulators. The conditions imposed on the neobanks, such as restricting peer-to-peer crypto transactions and enhancing KYC processes, pose challenges for the industry.
