CBN's New Measures to Enhance Digital Banking Security

The Chartered Risk Management Institute of Nigeria (CRMI) has endorsed the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) latest regulatory measures aimed at tightening security across the country's rapidly growing digital payment landscape. In a statement issued on Saturday, CRMI's President and Chairman of the Council, Kevin Ugwok, described the framework as timely in response to escalating threats within the financial system, particularly fraud, identity theft, and unauthorized access linked to instant payment platforms.

The CBN's new framework includes a 20,000 transaction cap for newly activated mobile banking applications within the first 24 hours and mandates the deployment of a real-time enterprise fraud monitoring system. The measures come amid a sharp rise in electronic transactions, driven by mobile banking and fintech platforms, which have recorded millions of daily transactions.

However, this growth has been accompanied by increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes. The CBN's guidelines focus on consumer protection and operational resilience in cybersecurity, urging banks and fintechs to upgrade their cybersecurity infrastructure and enhance fraud detection systems.