CBN Grants Airtel Full Super-Agent License

Airtel Nigeria has been granted a full super-agent license from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This is coming six months after Airtel announced it had secured the license in principle.

The latest development made public in a press release titled “NIGERIA SUPER AGENT FULL LICENSE APPROVAL” signed by Simon O’Hara, company secretary means Airtel has a full super-agent license to operate as an agency network.

Super agents are businesses that have been licensed by the CBN to recruit agents for agency banking, which involves providing financial services to communities on behalf of banks in order to increase financial inclusion.

The super agent licence is distinct from the Payment Service Bank (PSB) licence for which MTN received approval in principle on November 4, 2021.

The statement filed with the NGX reads, “Further to our announcement of 15 November 2021, Airtel Africa, a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services, with a presence in 14 countries across Africa, today confirms that the Central Bank of Nigeria (‘CBN’) has awarded its subsidiary, Airtel Mobile Commerce Nigeria Ltd, with a full super agent licences.”

The company, in the statement, did not state specifically when operations in that regard would resume but however stated that, “The licence allows us to create an agency network that can service the customers of licenced Nigerian banks, payment service banks and licenced mobile money operators in Nigeria.”