The FCCPC talks about banning airtime and data borrowing

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has denied widespread reports that airtime lending and data forwarding services have been banned in Nigeria, describing the claims as false and misleading.

In a statement on Friday, the Commission said its attention had been drawn to newspaper publications and viral social media posts suggesting it had canceled or discontinued airtime lending and data advance services nationwide.

The FCCPC has clarified that such claims are incorrect, noting that it has not prohibited airtime lending or data forwarding services, nor has it issued any directives preventing consumers from accessing legal value-added telecommunications services.

The Commission explained that following numerous consumer complaints regarding opaque fees, unexplained deductions, aggressive collection practices, inadequate disclosure standards and inadequate accountability in some parts of the digital lending and advance services market, it introduced the DEON Consumer Lending Regulations in July 2025.

According to the FCCPC, the regulations were designed to curb abusive practices by service providers that had caused repeated harm to consumers and undermined confidence in the market.

It said the framework aims to promote fairness and transparency by requiring adequate record-keeping, responsible lending conduct, clear indication of fees and terms, accessible complaint channels, data protection safeguards, greater accountability for third-party partners and effective regulatory oversight.

The Commission added that investigations in the telecommunications sector revealed that some operators had adopted technical exclusion agreements with third parties that violated the provisions of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act.

He noted that affected operators were initially given a 90-day compliance window when the framework started in July 2025 to regularize their services.

The deadline was later extended to January 5, 2026, but some operators failed to complete the required compliance steps.

The FCCPC said that any temporary suspensions or restrictions introduced by service providers should be viewed as a business or compliance decision by the operators themselves, not a ban imposed by the Commission.

The agency warned that attempts to misrepresent temporary service disruptions as regulatory bans are misleading, urging Nigerians to ignore false information and rely on verified sources.