Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has launched the NGX Net-Zero Programme to guide listed companies toward clear carbon reduction pathways and enhanced climate disclosures aligned with global investor standards.

NGX

The high-level launch engaged chief executives of quoted firms alongside development partners including German Investment Corporation KfW, DEG, and African Foresight Group (AFG), NGX’s implementation partner. Issuers and investors discussed financing decarbonisation, sustainability practices, and attracting climate-aligned capital.

NGX Group Chairman Dr Umaru Kwairanga described the initiative as concrete climate action, commending partners for two years of groundwork. “Today marks leadership and decisive action. Climate change has become a core business imperative, with capital markets mobilising capital and setting standards,” Kwairanga said.

He positioned NGX Net-Zero to support emissions measurement, disclosure, capacity building, and sustainable finance access, urging CEOs to embrace it strategically rather than as compliance. Kwairanga reaffirmed NGX’s goal to make Nigeria’s capital market Africa’s green finance hub.

Group CEO Temi Popoola called climate action a business imperative, noting sustainability-embedded firms attract capital, manage risks, and stay competitive. DEG Management Board Member Monika Beck highlighted partnerships scaling impactful, commercially viable climate solutions.

The event closed with a ceremonial gong marking the programme launch and send-off for outgoing DEG Regional Director Bernd Telemann.

Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has hailed Nigeria’s removal from the European Union’s list of high-risk third countries for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) as a landmark achievement endorsing the nation’s reform efforts.

Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU)

NFIU CEO Hafsat Abubakar Bakari said the delisting, contained in European Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) C (2025) 8460 adopted December 4, 2025 and effective January 29, 2026, affirms sustained AML/CFT and Counter Proliferation Financing (CPF) reforms.

The move follows Nigeria’s exit from the FATF Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring after addressing strategic deficiencies, alongside Burkina Faso, Mali, Mozambique, South Africa and Tanzania.

Bakari noted the European Commission recognised Nigeria’s strengthened AML/CFT effectiveness, closed technical gaps, and fulfilled FATF Action Plan commitments leading to grey list removal in June and October 2025.

The delisting eliminates enhanced due diligence requirements for EU financial transactions, easing compliance, boosting cross-border flows, and enhancing Nigeria’s appeal for European trade, investment and partnerships.

The NFIU attributed success to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s political will and collaboration among National Assembly, law enforcement, regulators, judiciary, private sector and development partners.

The agency reaffirmed commitment to ongoing FATF, GIABA, EU engagement and domestic framework resilience to maintain international confidence in Nigeria’s financial system.

The Federal Government has directed all banks and fintechs to collect and remit 7.5 per cent value-added tax on certain electronic banking services, effective Monday, January 19, 2026, according to an email notice issued by payment platforms.

The VAT will apply to electronic banking charges, including mobile money transfers, USSD transaction fees, and card issuance fees, according to an email notice on Wednesday shared with customers by Moniepoint.

For example, if a bank charges N100 to make a transfer, the 7.5 per cent VAT will be applied to that service fee, not the money being sent.

“From Monday, January 19, 2026, we are required to collect a 7.5 per cent VAT, to be remitted to the Nigerian Revenue Service (formerly known as the Federal Inland Revenue Service).

“VAT will apply to certain banking services that include electronic banking charges such as mobile banking fees (transfers), USSD transaction fees, and card issuance fees,” the email read.

Other operators are expected to issue similar notices to their customers in the coming days. Services that will remain exempt include interest earned on deposits and savings, meaning customers will not pay tax on the returns from their accounts.

The NRS, formerly known as the Federal Inland Revenue Service, has set the deadline to ensure that all commercial banks, microfinance banks, and electronic money operators comply with the collection and remittance requirement.

Moniepoint stressed that this is not a price increase but a statutory obligation. “Moniepoint is required to collect and remit VAT to the Nigerian Revenue Service,” the company said in a statement.

The move is part of the government’s broader efforts to standardise VAT collection on digital financial services and expand revenue generation amid Nigeria’s growing digital economy. VAT on banking transactions is not entirely new; the NRS is now enforcing uniform collection rules across all platforms, ensuring compliance across the sector.

Customers have been assured that the new tax will be clearly itemised, with the VAT shown separately on transaction statements and reports.

In December, several commercial banks informed customers that the N50 stamp duty would be deducted on electronic transfers of N10,000 and above, following the commencement of provisions of the new Tax Act.

The charge, previously known as the EMTL, has now been formally reclassified as stamp duty and will be applied as a one-off fee on qualifying electronic transfers.