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Payment Solution Service Provider (PSSP) Authorisation — Nigeria

The Nigeria category mapped to payment processing.

Regulator: Central Bank of Nigeria.

PSSPs provide payment solutions but CANNOT hold customer funds - explicitly NOT e-money issuance. This is the canonical NG confusion the register resolves. Published under section 'D. PAYMENT SOLUTION SERVICES LICENCE (PSS) CATEGORY'.

Maintained: this official source is re-checked on a weekly schedule — last checked 2026-08-24 · unchanged since the previous check.

Not yet ingested: Documented as the Nigerian processing-contrast category (PSSPs cannot hold customer funds); the register section exists but its entities are not yet ingested.

Licence requirements

What it takes to hold this licence, as stated in the cited official instruments. Capital and fees are shown in the currency the statute itself uses.

Requirement As published Source Source date
Minimum capital
₦100,000,000 shareholders' funds unimpaired by losses + refundable escrow ₦100m. (The PSS umbrella = ₦250m when applying for all three PSS licences at once — PSSP ₦100m + PTSP ₦100m + Super-Agent ₦50m.)
Verbatim
“N100,000,000.00 (shareholders' funds unimpaired by losses) … Escrow of refundable N100m into CBN PSP Share Capital Deposit Account No. 1000014009 … N250,000,000.00 … (for entities applying for the three (3) licences at a time: PSSP – N100m, PTSP – N100m, and Super Agent – N50m)”
CBN, Approved New Licence Categorization Requirements (Consolidated – 2021) — the per-category eligibility/capital/fee sheets giving effect to the circular "New Licence Categorizations for the Nigerian Payments System" (ref BPSD, issued 9 Dec 2020). 2020-12-09
Local presence / incorporation
CAC-registered Nigerian company; functional physical address
Verbatim
“Any corporate entity registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), with Memorandum and Article of Association (MEMART) … Functional physical address, contact e-mails from company's domain and telephone numbers”
CBN, Approved New Licence Categorization Requirements (Consolidated – 2021) — the per-category eligibility/capital/fee sheets giving effect to the circular "New Licence Categorizations for the Nigerian Payments System" (ref BPSD, issued 9 Dec 2020). 2020-12-09
Timeline
AIP valid 6 months; no processing SLA
Verbatim
“Approval-in-Principle for six (6) Months”
CBN, Approved New Licence Categorization Requirements (Consolidated – 2021) — the per-category eligibility/capital/fee sheets giving effect to the circular "New Licence Categorizations for the Nigerian Payments System" (ref BPSD, issued 9 Dec 2020). 2020-12-09
Local ownership No such requirement: No quota; disclosure only CBN, Approved New Licence Categorization Requirements (Consolidated – 2021) — the per-category eligibility/capital/fee sheets giving effect to the circular "New Licence Categorizations for the Nigerian Payments System" (ref BPSD, issued 9 Dec 2020). 2020-12-09
Fees
₦100,000 application + ₦1,000,000 licensing
Verbatim
“Non-refundable application fee of N100,000.00 … Licensing fee of N1,000,000.00 to be paid before the issuance of the final licence, if successful.”
CBN, Approved New Licence Categorization Requirements (Consolidated – 2021) — the per-category eligibility/capital/fee sheets giving effect to the circular "New Licence Categorizations for the Nigerian Payments System" (ref BPSD, issued 9 Dec 2020). 2020-12-09
Ongoing obligations
Restricted object clause; KYC + AML/CFT procedures; consumer-protection policy; ERM / dispute-resolution / BCP frameworks; PCIDSS/PA-DSS certification (if applicable); renewable on satisfactory performance
Verbatim
“Procedures for KYC and AML/CFT compliance … Consumer Protection Policy and Procedure Board Approval … RESTRICTED to relevant payments system activities permitted by the Bank”
CBN, Approved New Licence Categorization Requirements (Consolidated – 2021) — the per-category eligibility/capital/fee sheets giving effect to the circular "New Licence Categorizations for the Nigerian Payments System" (ref BPSD, issued 9 Dec 2020). 2020-12-09

Requirements as published in the cited instruments — not legal or compliance advice. Where a value is located but not yet verified, we show that it exists but don't publish the figure. Verify directly with the regulator.

The equivalent in other markets

Categories mapped to the same normalized activity — fintech:PAYMENT_PROCESSING:

Cross-border rules for Nigeria →