The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Olayemi Cardoso has called on monetary authorities in the West African Sub-region to fight against money laundry in the region.

He made the call while speaking at the 10th meeting of the College of Supervisors for Non-Bank Financial Institutions (CSNBFI) in the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) in Abuja.

Represented by the Acting Director, Other Financial Institutions Department, Mr. Abayomi Arogundade, Cardoso stated, “We must continue to push forward the agenda of strengthening the anti-money laundering practices; deepening supervisory capacity on cybersecurity and Fintech regulation; and the implementation of risk-based supervisory approach.

“We reiterate the importance of monitoring trends, risks and innovations of NBFIs/OFIs as their increasing transaction volumes pose major financial system stability risk.”

On Fintech loans, Cardoso said: “Fintech loans is one of the most commonly reported innovation. While overall this may appear small in relation to the size of credit by Deposit Monetary Banks, DMBs, some jurisdictions globally, have noted a growing trend in the volume of these loans.

“In many cases, Fintech credit is provided via electronic platforms that connect lenders to borrowers – in which case the platform takes the role of a financial auxiliary.

“In some cases, however, loans are taken on the balance sheet of these platforms (even if it is short-term), in which case the platforms are akin to new types of financial intermediaries. These entities are typically Fintech firms that offer applications, software, and other technologies to streamline mobile and online banking.”

Cardoso encouraged that regulatory bodies in the sub-region work together in order to address cases of exploiting innovations in the industry to hurt members of the public and institutions.