The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) are set to deepen collaboration to strengthen the regulation of Point of Sale (POS) operators and protect Nigeria’s financial system from economic crimes.
During a courtesy visit to the EFCC headquarters, CAC Board Chairman, Senator Ibrahim M. Ida, proposed three key areas of partnership aimed at improving compliance and tackling financial crimes.
He revealed that only about 20 per cent of POS operators across Nigeria are currently registered with the CAC, despite the requirements of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020 and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Agent Banking Regulations 2026, which mandate business registration for all operators.
Senator Ida expressed concern that investigations have shown proceeds from criminal activities, including ransom payments linked to kidnapping, are sometimes routed through unregistered POS terminals.
To address the challenge, he proposed enhanced data and intelligence sharing on suspicious companies, joint public awareness campaigns on corporate governance and financial crime risks, and capacity-building programmes for staff to tackle emerging threats at the intersection of company law and economic crime.
Responding, EFCC Executive Chairman, Olanipekun Olukoyede, disclosed that more than 80 per cent of financial crimes in Nigeria are committed through procurement fraud and the use of registered companies. He added that investigations into 200 companies referred by the CAC had uncovered significant findings.
Olukoyede agreed that regulating POS operators has become an urgent priority for safeguarding Nigeria’s financial system. He also called for a review of the existing Memorandum of Understanding between the EFCC and CAC to strengthen cooperation and support broader reforms aimed at combating economic and financial crimes.
