The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has created a Compliance Department to strengthen supervision of financial crimes and environmental, social, governance risks.
According to a circular signed by Olubunmi Ayodele-Oni, the department was established in Q1 2025 and became fully operational in Q2. The move is part of structural reforms to consolidate oversight, clarify institutional roles, and ensure stronger monitoring of non-prudential and emerging risks, the bank said.
The Compliance Department will oversee financial crime supervision, including anti-money laundering (AML), counter-financing of terrorism (CFT), counter-proliferation financing (CPF), and sanctions compliance. It will also supervise market conduct covering disclosures, complaints management, and advertising standards.
In addition, enterprise security supervision will cover cybersecurity, data protection, and third-party risks, while corporate governance and ESG oversight will focus on board effectiveness and sustainability practices.
All financial institutions have been directed to route correspondence on these areas to the new department.
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“The establishment of the Compliance Department is a strategic move to embed regulatory discipline and ensure robust oversight of non-prudential risks,” the circular stated. Institutions will receive guidance on contact points and submission protocols directly from the department.
The development comes amid rising financial crime. In July, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, represented by Deputy Governor Muhammad Sani Abdullahi, disclosed that fraud cases rose 45 percent in one year. About 70 percent of recorded losses came from digital channels, particularly unregulated virtual asset platforms, according to the CBN’s Financial Stability Report 2024.
Cardoso noted that while digital innovation has deepened financial inclusion, it has also introduced regulatory and security challenges that require targeted oversight.
The CBN reaffirmed its commitment to work collaboratively with operators to ensure a smooth transition.
The circular also aligns with other regulatory initiatives. Recently, the apex bank directed all participants in the payment ecosystem—including Deposit Money Banks, Microfinance Banks, Mobile Money Operators, and Super Agents—to complete migration to the ISO 20022 messaging standard and implement geo-tagging of terminals by October 31, 2025.
By embedding compliance into its regulatory structure, the CBN aims to enhance market integrity and safeguard Nigeria’s financial system against evolving risks.
