The Central Bank of Nigeria has unveiled an ambitious plan to bring about N2.83tn currently held outside the banking system into formal financial channels and 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, as 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 target is coming a few months before Nigeria’s 2027 general elections, with the Independent National Electoral Commission scheduling 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 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.
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“Today, we unveil more than a payment strategy. We unveil a vision for how Nigerians will transact, trade, save, invest, and participate in an increasingly digital economy,” he said.
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.
Cardoso disclosed that the apex bank intends to reduce cash outside the banking system to less than 40 per cent of money in circulation by 2028. “I would like to see a situation where we will reduce cash outside the banking system to less than 40 per cent of money in circulation,” he said.
Using the April 2026 figures as a benchmark, achieving that target would imply reducing cash outside banks from N5.08tn to about N2.26tn, potentially returning roughly N2.83tn to the formal banking system.
Such a shift could significantly improve monetary policy transmission, increase banking sector liquidity, enhance financial intermediation, and strengthen lenders’ ability to support economic activity.
The effort comes as Nigeria prepares for the 2027 elections, when concerns over cash-intensive campaign activities and vote-buying are expected to place renewed focus on the amount of currency held outside formal financial channels.
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