Nigeria Inter - Bank Settlement System PLC

The Managing Director/CEO of Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) Plc, Premier Oiwoh, received Dr. Bonaventure Okhaimo, FCIB, Managing Director/CEO of the National Credit Guarantee Company Limited (NCGC), joined by their respective
leadership teams, during a courtesy visit to the NIBSS Head Office in Lagos recently.

The engagement reflected a mutual recognition that deeper collaboration between NIBSS and NCGC is essential to advancing financial inclusion and economic growth.

Both parties expressed commitment to operational synergy that will enhance institutional capacity and support the seamless delivery of financial services in line with national development objectives.

The future of financial services extends far beyond daily transactions, it is defined by the underlying policy, robust infrastructure, and continuous innovation shaping value exchange.

Unlocking what comes next requires examining these core forces alongside the leaders steering them. As Nigeria’s foremost payment infrastructure provider, we are proud to launch NIBSS DIGEST, a flagship pan-industry publication designed to bring these critical perspectives together into a single executive platform.

In this maiden edition, "𝘙𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘗𝘢𝘺𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴," we convene strategic insights from regulatory authorities, financial institution executives, fintech pioneers, and payment advocates across Nigeria, Africa, and global markets.

From deep dives into the Nigeria Payments System Vision (PSV) 2028 and sovereign payment rails to trust, interoperability, digital identity, and AI, this issue offers essential reading for everyone.

Explore the inaugural e-copy of NIBSS Digest here:
https://bit.ly/nibssdigest

For financial inclusion to create lasting impact, women must be able to participate meaningfully in the economy.

This was at the heart of the “Her Economy” conversation at the 2nd National Gender Inclusion Conference, , held on 19–20 August 2026 at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja, where Akwaugo Sylva-Ezemoka, Head, Banks 2 at Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System PLC, represented the MD/CEO as a panelist.

The discussion explored the role of data, technology and digital payments in creating more responsive financial solutions for women, while highlighting the need for privacy, responsible data use and reliable payment infrastructure to support inclusion at scale.


The conversation reinforced the importance of building financial systems that recognise the diverse realities of women and enable them to participate more fully in the economy.

As AI becomes more deeply embedded in financial services, the real question is no longer whether to adopt it, but how to do so responsibly.

At Digital PayExpo 2026, Akinkunmi Ogunsola, Ag. Principal Architect at NIBSS, joined fellow industry leaders for a conversation on what responsible and inclusive digital finance should look like in practice.

From governance and trust to interoperability and financial inclusion, the session explored some of the opportunities and hard questions shaping the digital payments ecosystem.

Looking back at CORE 1.0, the E-Business BackOffice Breakfast Forum hosted by Interswitch Group in Lagos, NIBSS Head of Operations, Ekeoma Chidi-Ugorji, joined industry leaders to discuss the critical role of back-office operations in driving efficiency, innovation, and resilience across Nigeria's payments ecosystem.

During the panel session, Ekeoma described operations as the heartbeat of every financial institution, emphasising that while technology powers payments, operations builds the trust that sustains them. The engagement reinforced the value of continuous industry dialogue, knowledge sharing, and collaboration in building a resilient, secure, and future-ready financial ecosystem.

As artificial intelligence reshapes financial services, the conversation around compliance and fraud prevention has never been more critical.

Representing NIBSS, Oluwatosin Obadimu, Fraud Desk Manager, participated in the Adhere Compliance Frontline Forum 2026 – The Trust Frontier in Lagos, where Adhere and TechCabal unveiled The Compliance Reckoning: Regulating Financial Services in the Age of AI, a report examining the impact of AI on regulatory compliance and financial services.

The forum brought together industry experts to discuss emerging fraud risks, the evolving compliance landscape and the growing role of AI in strengthening regulatory oversight and financial crime prevention.

The engagement highlights the importance of proactive collaboration and innovation in strengthening fraud prevention and advancing a more secure digital financial ecosystem.

CBN Director of Payments System Supervision Visits NIBSS HQ

On Thursday, 23 July 2026, NIBSS Plc hosted Dr. Rakiya Opemi Yusuf, Director, Payments System Supervision Department, Central Bank of Nigeria , at our Head Office in Lagos. She was received by Premier Oiwoh, MD/CEO, Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System PLC alongside other Executive Management staff.

The engagement focused on the implementation of PoS geo-tagging and geo-fencing, a CBN directive set to be full effect from August 1, 2026. NIBSS and the CBN reaffirmed a joint commitment to compliance, real-time monitoring, and the integrity of Nigeria’s payments ecosystem. As the national payments infrastructure, NIBSS remains committed to enabling a secure, transparent, and compliant digital economy.

𝗣𝗦𝗩 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟴: 𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀
The recent launch of the Nigeria Payments System Vision (PSV) 2028 by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) marks a pivotal milestone in the nation's journey towards a digital economy. The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) Plc commends the Governor of the CBN, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, and the apex bank’s leadership for establishing this forward-thinking blueprint. As the Governor noted during his speech, “this is a national roadmap designed to fundamentally transform how every Nigerian transacts, trades, saves, and invests.”

At NIBSS, this vision is viewed as a mission that aligns with our core operational mandate. As the bedrock of Nigeria’s digital payment infrastructure, our strategic initiatives are engineered to serve as the primary ex*****on engine for the pillars outlined in the vision.

To drive this ex*****on, the National Payment Stack (NPS) serves as a platform and key fundamental anchor for the vision's core pillars:
• 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻: PSV 2028 target 95% formal financial inclusion rate by 2028, bringing over 50 million more Nigerians into the formal financial ecosystem. The NPS supports this ambition by providing scalable, cost-efficient infrastructure that extends secure digital payment platform access to underserved communities, while enabling sovereign initiatives such as the AfriGO domestic card scheme to deepen acceptance across urban and rural markets.

• 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: As digital transactions grow exponentially, the NPS utilizes the global ISO 20022 messaging standard to deliver high-capacity, real-time settlement. This architecture enhances system resilience, reduces transaction friction, and ensures seamless interoperability across banks, fintechs, OFIs, merchants, and government payment systems. This provides the foundation to support PSV 2028’s ambition to expand payment acceptance through millions of QR and tap-to-pay touchpoints nationwide.

•𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘀: PSV 2028 envisions greater collaboration through 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗣𝗜𝘀, enabling next-generation fintech solutions, reducing cash outside the banking system to less than 40%, and creating the conditions for Nigeria’s next global fintech unicorn by 2028. Supporting this vision, the NPS provides interoperable payment infrastructure that powers an 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗣𝗜 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆, enabling fintechs and financial institutions to build, scale, and accelerate innovative digital financial solutions.

Beyond domestic growth, the NPS expands Nigeria's reach while securing the digital ecosystem:
• 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀-𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀: By natively adopting the international ISO 20022 standards, the NPS positions Nigeria’s payment infrastructure globally, simplifying cross-border messaging, reducing settlement complexities, and enabling deeper integration with regional and global financial systems in line with PSV 2028’s broader integration agenda.

• 𝗖𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁: Trust remains the foundation for the future of digital finance. The NPS integrates advanced security architecture, intelligence monitoring, and enhanced fraud management tools designed to strengthen economic resilience, safeguard transactions, and support the vision’s objective of reducing fraud losses to less than 0.001% by 2028.

The NPS is a journey that marks the beginning of a major milestone in the future of payments in Nigeria. It provides a future-ready foundation that will continuously evolve to meet emerging needs and opportunities; working closely with ecosystem partners to enable innovation and the development of new solutions that drive greater value for the ecosystem.

The successful realization of PSV 2028 requires collaboration across all ecosystem players. The vision has been set, and the targets have been identified; it is time for the ecosystem to execute.