Court Affirms CBN's Exclusive Rights to eNaira Platform

On Friday, the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled in favor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), granting it exclusive ownership rights to the eNaira digital currency platform. Justice James Omotosho issued a perpetual injunction restraining eNaira Payment Solutions from presenting itself as the registered proprietor of the eNaira trademark.

The court noted that although the company was incorporated in 2004, its name was misleadingly linked to Nigeria's sovereign currency. The trademark registration for eNaira was previously withdrawn on November 15, 2021.

The court emphasized that the name eNaira is closely associated with Nigeria's legal tender, which is under the sole control of the CBN. The court dismissed the suit filed by eNaira Payment Solutions, stating that they failed to comply with a prior directive to change their name and awarded CBN N10 million in costs.