The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to establish the Nigerian International Financial Centre (NIFC) by September 2022, a development it explained would be driven by technology and payment infrastructure to pave a gateway for funds and investments into the country.
Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, made the disclosure at the 14th annual banking and finance conference organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in Abuja on Tuesday.
According to Emefiele, the new financial hub, when operational, will be a 24-hour financial centre that will complement London, New York, and Singapore financial hubs, enabling Nigerian efforts like Infracorp Plc, a N15 trillion infrastructure fund that will be launched in October 2021, to accelerate, and also, bring together local and foreign banks and elevate them into global champions.
The NIFC, he noted further, would complement financial initiatives including the national theatre creative hubs for youths, as well as the e-naira project which will debut in October 2021.
The apex bank governor added that the new financial hub would take advantage of existing laws such as the BOFIA 2020, NEPZA and other CBN regulations to create a fully global investment and a financial hub where monies, ideas, and technology will move freely without hindrance.
