Central Bank of Nigeria Considers Making Digital Payments a New Norm

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria is currently reevaluating its monetary policies to include the digital ecosystem. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria Godwin Emefiele is a central figure in this innovation discussion.

This initiative was discussed at a recent MPC strategic retreat on Friday with the theme “Monetary Policy Implementation in a Digitally-Evolving Developing Economy”. The retreat was held in Lakowe, Ibeju-Lekki Lagos on July 15-16.

Mr.Emefiele shared the following post on Twitter:

Emefiele states that technology and innovation were game changers in the economic development in Nigeria. As a result, he advocates for exploring new ways to adapt monetary policy tools to include technology and innovations to Nigeria’s growth equation.

The evolution of FinTechs, Cryptocurrencies, Digital Payments, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning, have changed the functioning of the financial and banking sectors, both globally and domestically (…) Therefore, the urgent call for the need to rethink financial system regulation, supervision, and monetary policy implementation,’’ — CBN governor Godwin Emefiele

Additionally, Emefiele stated that Nigeria’s Monetary Policy Committee members must embrace advanced levels of understanding when it comes to the interplay of digitalization of monetary policy objectives, targets, and tools.

The governor also adds that despite the risks that come with innovation, there are always many benefits that come along with it, “Befits for the positive economic transformation, particularly, financial inclusion which has been the principal catalyst for inclusive growth, poverty reduction, and employment generation.”

At the time of writing, Mr.Emefiele has not made any announcements yet other than a follow-up post on Twitter.