Institute backs CBN’s new digital banking measures

The Chartered Risk Management Institute of Nigeria (CRMI) has thrown its full support behind the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) recent regulatory enhancements designed to bolster security across the nation's rapidly expanding digital payments landscape. In a statement released on Saturday, CRMI President and Chairman of Council, Kevin Ugwoke, lauded the framework as a crucial and timely intervention addressing the growing tide of financial system threats, including fraud, identity theft, and unauthorized access prevalent on instant payment platforms.

Ugwoke specifically highlighted several of the apex bank's introduced safeguards, such as the ₦20,000 transaction limit for newly activated mobile banking applications within their initial 24 hours, mandatory device binding, and the implementation of real-time enterprise fraud monitoring systems. The institute views these controls as strategically targeting the most vulnerable phase in digital banking – the account onboarding and activation process – a period often exploited by fraudsters to compromise user credentials. By restricting transaction exposure during this high-risk window, the framework significantly curtails opportunities for fraudulent activities on newly onboarded or compromised accounts.

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By limiting transaction exposure during the high-risk activation window, the framework significantly reduces the opportunity for fraudsters to exploit newly onboarded or compromised accounts.

This move by the CBN comes at a critical juncture, with electronic transactions surging due to the proliferation of mobile banking, fintech platforms, and the broader national push towards a cashless economy. Nigeria's instant payment system has witnessed exponential growth, processing millions of daily transactions amounting to trillions of naira monthly. However, this expansion has unfortunately been paralleled by an increase in sophisticated fraud schemes. The CRMI's endorsement underscores the importance of these robust security measures in safeguarding the integrity of Nigeria's digital financial ecosystem and protecting consumers from evolving cyber threats.

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The initiative would “deepen