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EFCC warns OPay on stricter KYC, anti-fraud compliance and insider abuse

The Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee (EFCC) has charged Opay’s administration and workers to prioritize compliance with all current rules to make sure enterprise integrity and stop fraudulent practices.

The directive was given by EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, throughout a courtesy go to by Opay’s Chief Government Officer, Mr. Steven Wen, and different high managers to the EFCC headquarters.

The instruction comes amid rising scrutiny of fintech corporations to strengthen anti-money laundering measures and safeguard system integrity.

What they’re saying 

The EFCC boss, talking by way of the Chief of Workers to the Chairman, Commander Michael Nzekwe, emphasised the position of anti-corruption in stimulating financial development. He urged Opay to uphold strict compliance with legal guidelines in all enterprise operations.

“Work on Know Your Clients, KYC, don’t give room for fraud, don’t enable your organization for use for cash laundering and adjust to each regulation of the land,” Olukoyede mentioned. 

He additionally praised Opay for its native content material employment technique, noting that

“Your ninety-nine per cent native workers are superb, we should commend you for that, however then once more, it is usually essential to reiterate the necessity for compliance with native legal guidelines. It is vitally essential as a result of you need to guarantee it’s not simply by phrase of mouth however extra by motion that you simply adjust to the native legal guidelines,” he mentioned. 

Insider abuse and methods integrity 

Abdulkarim Chukkol, Director of Investigation at EFCC, underscored the significance of safeguarding firm methods towards insider abuse.

“Programs integrity can also be essential to take a look at, secondly, the KYC, it’s not sufficient for us to say allow us to simply comply with solely what the CBN has given us, however once more, you need to go the additional mile.

I additionally need to give recommendation on the individuals that you simply make use of, generally insider abuse may be very rampant, regardless of how tight your system is, if you usher in someone that may do and undo, then undoubtedly everyone is in danger,” he mentioned.

Opay’s CEO, Wen, highlighted that Opay prioritizes regulatory compliance, customer satisfaction, and income technology. He emphasised that the corporate locations the best significance on adhering to native legal guidelines and rules, adopted by guaranteeing customer satisfaction by way of revolutionary options that tackle their wants.

Moreover, he famous that rising income stays a key focus, with compliance thought of a non-negotiable boundary for the enterprise

What you must know 

Nigeria’s fintech sector has been beneath elevated scrutiny from regulators, particularly round know‑your‑customer (KYC) requirements and anti‑cash laundering controls.

  • The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) fined fintech giants OPay and Moniepoint N1 billion every for compliance points found throughout routine audits, with a number of different fintechs additionally penalized. The crackdown comes as these corporations, working beneath microfinance bank licenses, quickly expanded to serve tens of millions of customers, prompting issues over customer safety and regulatory oversight.
  • In April 2024, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ordered outstanding fintech platforms, together with Opay, Palmpay, Kuda Bank, and Moniepoint, to halt onboarding of recent prospects for 2 months amid issues that some accounts had been getting used for illicit international alternate transactions and attributable to weak compliance with regulatory frameworks.

Opay and comparable corporations later paused new customer onboarding and took steps similar to closing non‑compliant accounts and strengthening safety measures to align with regulatory expectations.

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