Airtel Nigeria gets CBN’s approval to operate bank

Airtel Nigeria has been granted a full super-agent license from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This is coming six months after Airtel announced it had secured the license in principle.

The latest development made public in a press release titled “NIGERIA SUPER AGENT FULL LICENSE APPROVAL” signed by Simon O’Hara, the Company Secretary means Airtel has a full super-agent license to operate as an agency network.

Super agents are businesses that have been licensed by the CBN to recruit agents for agency banking, which involves providing financial services to communities on behalf of banks in order to increase financial inclusion.

According to the CBN’s regulatory framework, super agents are responsible for monitoring and supervising the activities of agents, including the volume and value of transactions for each type of service they offer, as well as monitoring effective compliance with set limits.

The statement filed with the NGX reads, “Further to our announcement of 15 November 2021, Airtel Africa, a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services, with a presence in 14 countries across Africa, today confirms that the Central Bank of Nigeria (‘CBN’) has awarded its subsidiary, Airtel Mobile Commerce Nigeria Ltd, with a full super-agent licences.”