The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has introduced new operational requirements for instant payments and stricter rules governing Bank Verification Number (BVN) operations as part of measures to strengthen fraud detection and ensure financial system stability.
In a circular issued on Thursday and signed by the Director of the Payments System Policy Department, Musa Jimoh, the apex bank directed all banks, other financial institutions and payment service providers to implement additional functionalities for instant payment services.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in line with its mandate to promote financial system stability, hereby issues additional guidance on the operations of Instant Payments in Nigeria,” it stated.
According to the apex bank, under the new guidelines, financial institutions offering instant payment services must allow customers to voluntarily opt in or opt out of instant transfers at any time.
It said the process must be secured with multi-factor authentication, while new customers will automatically be opted in when their accounts are opened.
Customers who opt out will be unable to carry out online instant transfers, but may still visit their banks physically to complete transactions.
CBN also directed banks to allow customers to voluntarily set their own transaction limits within the existing caps of ₦25 million for individuals and ₦250 million for corporate accounts.
It said any adjustment must undergo enhanced due diligence and risk assessment by the financial institution and will take effect immediately after successful multi-factor authentication.
To curb financial fraud, the CBN mandated all financial institutions to implement enterprise-wide fraud monitoring systems capable of tracking both inflows and outflows to detect and restrict suspicious transactions.
It further introduced stricter verification procedures for digital banking services.
It stressed that all accounts opened online must undergo a liveliness check and real-time validation with the BVN and National Identification Number databases.
Enhanced authentication methods, including biometrics, soft tokens, hard tokens and multi-factor authentication, will also be required for online account reactivation.
It also imposed tighter controls on mobile banking applications, stating that banks must ensure mandatory device binding, meaning a mobile banking app can only operate on one device at a time.
Any migration to another device will automatically trigger reactivation and authentication processes.
In addition, newly activated mobile banking applications will face temporary transaction restrictions.
For both new and existing accounts, banks must impose a transaction limit for the first 24 hours after activation, subject to a maximum of ₦20,000.
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According to the CBN, the new requirements represent the minimum operational standards for instant payments in Nigeria and will take effect from July 1, 2026.
Revised framework for BVN linked to fraud activities
In a related development, the apex bank also issued amendments to the Revised Regulatory Framework for Bank Verification Number and Watchlist for the Nigerian banking industry.
The new provisions require financial institutions to establish a temporary watchlist for BVNs linked to suspected fraudulent transactions. A BVN may remain on the watchlist for up to 24 hours while the account holder is contacted to clarify the flagged transaction.
The CBN also set the minimum age for BVN enrolment at 18 years and restricted amendments to phone numbers linked to a BVN to only once.
In addition, access to BVN databases has been limited strictly to CBN-licensed financial institutions, although the central bank noted that it may grant access in exceptional circumstances in line with existing laws.
The amendments to the BVN framework will take effect from May 1, 2026.
Alex is a business journalist cum data enthusiast with the Pinnacle Daily. He can be reached via ealex@thepinnacleng.com, @ehime_alex on X
