The Arewa Economic Forum (AEF), a coalition of Northern business leaders, intellectuals, technocrats, and grassroots stakeholders, has raised the alarm over what it described as a deliberate attempt to exclude Northern participation in the Bureau De Change (BDC) sub-sector under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) new recapitalisation policy.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja, Chairman of the forum, Ibrahim Shehu Dandakata, warned that the new guidelines, if left unaddressed, could effectively eliminate the North’s involvement in the BDC ecosystem, a sector he described as “pivotal to job creation, forex accessibility, and informal financial services in the region for decades.”
“The implication is clear: if left unaddressed, this policy will wipe out the entire Northern participation in the BDC space,” Dandakata said.
He also warned of serious security implications. “We cannot overlook the dangerous security implications of this development. Northern Nigeria is already reeling from the devastating effects of terrorism, rural banditry, and youth unemployment. Throwing thousands of BDC operators out of work will only add fuel to a volatile fire,” he added.
The forum called on President Bola Tinubu and his economic team to urgently address what they described as a looming crisis. According to Abdul Wahab Yusuf, a member of the Board of Trustees (North Central) of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria, “This is not merely an economic policy matter—it is a pressing national security issue.”
Under the new recapitalisation framework released by the CBN in May 2024, the regulatory landscape for BDCs has been dramatically altered. The revised guidelines mandate:
Tier 1 BDCs are proposed to now have a minimum capital base of N2 billion, with the authority to operate nationally, establish multiple branches, and appoint franchisees with prior approval.
Similarly, Tier 2 BDCs would have to meet a minimum capital base of N500 million, restricted to a single-state operation with a maximum of five branches and no franchise arrangements.
Before these changes, the capital requirement for a BDC licence in Nigeria stood at N35 million, a threshold that supported broader participation.
The AEF argued that the drastic increase disproportionately affects Northern operators who, it said, have built robust informal financial networks across cities like Kano, Abuja, Sokoto, Minna, and even Lagos for decades.
“We must place on record that out of the over 1,600 registered BDCs in Nigeria, more than 90% of those able to meet the new capital requirements are based in the South—with Lagos alone accounting for the overwhelming majority, and the sector now being dominated by a single ethnic group,” the Forum stated.
“In stark contrast, less than 10 per cent of compliant BDCs are owned by Northerners, despite the fact that Northern traders have historically driven and sustained this sub-sector,” it added.
The forum noted that comparable economies around the world maintain lower and more inclusive capital thresholds. “Our investigations reveal that countries such as South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and even India maintain substantially more accessible and affordable licensing thresholds, enabling broader participation and fostering financial inclusion without compromising regulatory oversight,” it said.
To avert what it called an economic and security catastrophe, the forum issued a set of recommendations to the CBN, the federal government, and other stakeholders. Chief among these is a call to extend the implementation window.
“The authorities should extend the implementation window to be a continuous exercise like the process of other financial institutions, or a minimum of six months or ideally one year, to allow for investor sensitisation, capital mobilisation, and regional collaboration. A rushed implementation will create irreversible damage,” the forum warned.
The group also advocated for the creation of at least three Tier 1 Northern-led BDC consortia to ensure regional equity. “Regional investment vehicles must be established to pool resources and support smaller BDC operators,” it urged.
The forum appealed to CBN Governor, Yemi Cardoso, and Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, to pay close attention to the socio-political implications of the recapitalisation framework.
“On equity and representation, we call on the minister of Finance and the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria to consider the optics and implications of a policy that many in the North may interpret as systematically exclusionary,” the statement added.
In addition, the AEF called on National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, to intervene, given the broader security risks the policy could trigger in a region already grappling with fragile stability.
“As someone deeply attuned to the region’s fragile security dynamics, we believe it is well within his mandate to ensure that economic exclusion does not compound existing threats to peace and stability,” Dandakata stressed.
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