Ahead of the 2027 general elections, the Central Bank of Nigeria has unveiled a plan to bring about N2.83tn currently held outside the banking system into formal financial channels.
The plan is also to expand financial inclusion by onboarding 50 million additional Nigerians by 2028.
The targets form part of the Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028 unveiled by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, on Monday in Abuja.
This is coming a few months before Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has scheduled the presidential and National Assembly polls for January 16, 2027, and governorship and state assembly elections for February 6, 2027, amid renewed concerns over cash-driven campaigns, vote-buying, and higher legal spending limits for candidates.
The apex bank seeks to deepen digital payments, strengthen trust in financial services, reduce cash dependence, and position Nigeria as a leading payments hub in Africa.
The launch brought together regulators, banks, fintech operators, telecommunications firms, development partners, and other stakeholders in the financial services ecosystem.
Cardoso said the initiative was not merely about technology or financial transactions but about creating economic opportunities, reducing poverty, and accelerating growth.
According to him, efficient payment systems remain among the fastest ways to lift large numbers of people out of poverty.
One of the fastest ways to take a large number of people out of poverty is through an efficient payments system. It’s through an efficient payment system. So let us not look at it lightly,” Cardoso said.
The governor described the Payments System Vision 2028 as a strategic roadmap that would shape how Nigerians transact, save, invest, trade, and participate in the digital economy over the next three years.
The new vision comes at a time when cash remains heavily concentrated outside the banking system despite years of financial inclusion efforts.
Latest figures from the CBN’s money and credit statistics show that currency outside banks stood at N5.08tn in April 2026, representing about 90.03 per cent of the N5.65tn currency in circulation during the period.
