Bank of Ghana and Central Bank of Nigeria Harmonize Regulatory Sandbox Rules for FinTech Interoperability
Central bank governors in Accra and Abuja have signed a historic fintech passport agreement, allowing licensed financial institutions and mobile money operators to expand across both economies without duplicated licensing.
Executive Intelligence Brief
- Joint regulatory passporting accord signed between Bank of Ghana and CBN.
- Expedited 30-day cross-border licensing timeline for verified fintech operators.
- Direct switch interoperability established between GhIPSS and Nigeria’s NIBSS.
- Dramatic reduction in retail remittance fees for cross-border traders and families.
ACCRA / ABUJA — The Bank of Ghana (BoG) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have executed a Joint Regulatory Passporting Accord, establishing mutual supervisory recognition for licensed payment service providers, micro-lenders, and digital asset custodian sandboxes.
The breakthrough agreement allows a fintech or payments gateway licensed under the Bank of Ghana’s Payment Systems and Services Act to launch commercial operations in Nigeria under an expedited 30-day compliance notification, and vice-versa.
The agreement addresses one of the most frustrating barriers confronting West African tech founders: the costly requirement of spending millions of dollars navigating separate, lengthy licensing procedures in each ECOWAS member state.
Governor of the Bank of Ghana Dr. Ernest Addison noted that seamless interoperability between Ghana's mobile money switches (GhIPSS) and Nigeria's NIBSS platform will allow cross-border remittances to settle instantly at fractions of the fees charged by Western remittance brokers.
Byline: Hope Moses-Ashike · Published: Saturday, October 31, 2026
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