Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has introduced stricter Bank Verification Number (BVN) enrolment and data access rules to prevent suspected fraudulent transactions, effective May 1, 2026.

This was disclosed in a statement issued over the weekend and titled “Addendum to the Revised Regulatory Framework for Bank Verification Number (BVN) Operations and Watchlist for the Nigerian Banking Industry 2021.”

The statement was signed by Musa Jimoh, director of the Payment System Policy Department.

The CBN said it introduced the ‘Revised Regulatory Framework for Bank Verification (BVN) and Watchlist for the Nigerian Banking Industry 2021’, to promote a stable financial system.

The apex bank reiterated that enrollment for the BVN be limited to individuals aged 18 and above, while amendments to phone numbers linked to a BVN will be restricted to a one-time change only.

Financial Institutions are mandated to establish and maintain a temporary watchlist for BVNs implicated in suspected fraudulent transactions reported by a financial institution.

“A BVN may remain on this temporary Watchlist for a maximum period of twenty-four (24) hours. During this period, the BVN owner shall be contacted to clarify the identified transaction(s).

Enrolment for BVN is restricted to individuals who have attained the age of eighteen (18) years and above. Amendments to phone numbers linked to a BVN shall be allowed only once,” the statement read.

The CBN insisted that it maintain an exclusive right to access BVN databases and to approve access to them by financial institutions.

“Access to the BVN databases shall be exclusively granted to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licensed financial institutions. Notwithstanding this provision, the Central Bank of Nigeria (the Bank) reserves the right to approve access to the BVN databases in extenuating circumstances and in accordance with the provisions of extant laws,” the statement said.

The directive was part of the CBN’s recent regulatory amendments in combating fraudulent activities.

On Tuesday, the bank issued new regulations, “Baseline Standards for Automated Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Solution for Financial Institutions in Nigeria’, to all financial institutions, in a bid to automatically counter money laundering and terrorism financing.

NOVA Bank Limited has announced the appointment of Jude Anele as its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, following the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Jude Anele

The appointment comes at a pivotal moment in the Bank’s evolution, following its transition from merchant banking to commercial banking and the successful completion of its recapitalisation programme ahead of the March 31, 2026, regulatory deadline.

Anele brings more than 33 years of banking experience across West and Central Africa, with deep expertise in retail / commercial banking, corporate banking, risk management, institutional transformation and executive leadership.

Over the course of his career, he has led complex banking operations, strengthened governance frameworks, delivered sustainable revenue growth and built high-performance teams.

The appointment reflects the Board’s strategic commitment to consolidating NOVA Bank’s commercial banking platform while accelerating growth across its Corporate, Commercial and Retail segments, as well as priority markets.

Speaking on his appointment, Anele said he was honoured to assume leadership of the Bank at a defining stage of its growth.
“Nova Bank has built a strong institutional foundation defined by regulatory compliance, capital strength, disciplined governance and a clear commercial mandate.

“Our focus now is execution — deepening customer relationships, expanding responsibly across priority markets, strengthening risk discipline and delivering sustainable value to our shareholders,” he said.

The Bank’s Chairman, Phillips Oduoza, also expressed confidence in the new leadership.

“The Board is pleased to welcome Mr. Jude Anele as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. His depth of experience, strategic clarity and proven leadership record align strongly with NOVA Bank’s growth ambitions,” Oduoza said.

He added that with recapitalization completed ahead of the regulatory timeline, the Bank is entering a new phase defined by scale, stability and structured expansion.

NOVA Bank also confirmed that it has met the recapitalization requirements set by the Central Bank of Nigeria ahead of the regulatory deadline, reinforcing its capital adequacy and long-term financial stability.

The capital raise, supported by new and existing shareholders, further strengthens the Bank’s balance sheet and positions it for disciplined growth.

In 2025, Global Credit Rating reaffirmed NOVA Commercial Bank’s national scale long- and short-term issuer ratings of BBB(NG) and A3(NG) respectively, while Agusto & Co. reaffirmed the Bank’s “Bbb” rating with a stable outlook, reflecting its strong capital base, sound liquidity position and resilient asset quality relative to its risk profile.

NOVA Bank currently maintains operations in Lagos, Abuja, Owerri and Port Harcourt, with plans to open eight additional branches across key commercial hubs in 2026 as part of its expansion strategy.

The commissioning of the Bank’s regional office in Owerri marked a significant milestone in its South-East and South-South growth strategy.

The event attracted government officials’ business leaders and Nigerians in diaspora and underscored NOVA Bank’s commitment to supporting enterprise development and economic growth.

NOVA Bank Limited is a commercial bank licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria. Commencing operations in 2018 as a merchant bank, the institution transitioned to a commercial bank in 2024 and provides retail, SME, corporate and commercial banking services through its Phygital model—an integrated approach combining physical branch presence with digital banking infrastructure.

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has asked commercial banks to restrict loan defaulters, specifically large-ticket obligors, from accessing credit facilities.

A large ticket obligor is a borrower (an individual or company) that owes a very large amount of money to a bank.

The directive is coming a week after the CBN asked financial institutions to stress test.

It is uncertain if the two directives are connected or what may have triggered the loan-related instruction, but the apex bank said it furthers its mandate to protect Nigeria’s financial system.

“In furtherance of its mandate to promote a sound financial system, protect depositors, and enhance prudential compliance within the banking sector, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) hereby directs all banks to restrict non-performing large ticket obligors, whose activities pose systemic risk to the financial system, from accessing specified banking services,” the circular reads in part.

“Any large-ticket obligor with a non-performing facility recorded in the CRMS and/or any licensed private credit bureau shall not be granted additional credit facilities. For the purpose of this restriction, credit facilities include loans and other forms of direct credit.

“In addition, such obligors shall not be granted banking facilities or contingent liabilities such as bankers’ confirmations, letters of credit, performance bonds, or advance payment guarantees.”

On strengthening collateral coverage, the CBN asked financial institutions to obtain additional realisable collateral from such obligors to adequately secure existing exposures.

The CBN said large ticket obligors are borrowers whose exposures are as defined under Clause 3.2 (d) of the prudential guidelines for deposit money banks in Nigeria 2010, or a customer with a combined exposure across banks, as shown in the credit risk management system (CRMS), and/or as shown in the reports of a licensed private credit bureau, “that exceed the Single Obligor Limit (SOL), which materially affect a bank’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) or otherwise pose a systemic risk to the financial system”.

“This directive reinforces earlier measures, particularly the circular titled “Prohibition of Loan Defaulters from Further Access to Credit Facilities in the Banking System” issued on June 30, 2014 (Ref: BSD/DIR/GEN/LAB/07/015). This is to ensure consistency and effectiveness in curbing credit abuse by large-ticket obligors,” the circular further reads.

The regulator said it will monitor compliance with the directive to ensure consistent implementation across the banking industry.

The CBN warned that noncompliance would attract appropriate regulatory sanctions in line with the provisions of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020.

Nigerian banks are undergoing a recapitalisation programme, slated to end by March 31.

So far, about 30 banks have met the minimum capital requirements announced in March 2024.