CBN announces new guidelines on the African payments operation, settlement system in Nigeria – Thage

By Victor Osula, Abuja

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced a significant review of the documentation requirements for transactions conducted through the Panofricano payment system and regulation (Paps) in Nigeria.

The director of the acting of the CBN, Corporate Communications, Hakama Sidi Ali (Mrs), said that the initiative is part of the constant commitment of the bank to encourage intra-African trade seamlessly, financial inclusion and operational efficiency for the Nigerians who engage in cross-border payments within Africa.

Launched by Afreximbank in collaboration with the African Union and the Afcfta secretariat (African Continental Free Trade (AFCFTA) in January 2022, Ponse acts as a payment platform and centralized regulation that allows instant, safe and efficient transactions throughout Africa. Facilitating payments in local currencies, the paps minimize the dependence on third -party currencies, It reduces transaction costs and supports the rapid expansion of exchanges pursuant to the FCFTA.

In a recent TED/FEM/PUB/FPC/001/006 referenced circular issued on April 28, 2025, CBN has outlined the key changes to the documentation requirements associated with the Ponse transactions.

Key changes that enter into effect immediately include:

“Simplified documentation for low value transactions: customers can now use Kyc and AML basic documents provided to their authorized banks (ADBS) for low -value transactions (respectively 2000 USD and 5,000 USD in Naira for principal people, for people, for operations, for foreign resources.

“Responsibility of candidates: candidates are responsible for ensuring that all regulatory documents are available to facilitate the authorization of goods, as required by relevant government agencies.

“Sor of supply in foreign currency: the authorized banks of retailers can now get in foreign currency for Paps settlements through the Nigerian change market (without resorting to the CBN).

“Export income: all the proceeds of exports repatriated through paps must be certified by relevant processing banks.”

During the direction of all banks to adopt Paps and start the transactions of origin in line with the new policy, the Apex bank invited exporters, importers and individuals to familiarize yourself with the new requirements and exploit paps for cross -border transactions within Africa.

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