E-Financial
Google Tightens Rules on Loan Apps, Operators Cry Out
Google, the global search engine, which provides the digital infrastructure, has tightened regulations on Fintech Loan apps by cutting off access to sensitive data including users’ contacts, photos and location.
Fintech Loan apps are waxing worriedly with Mr. Ngozi Dozie, a major player in the sector, and co-founder of Carbon Micro Finance, frowning at the new rule, describing it as discriminatory, according to HallmarkNews.com
“Why the different treatments? The distinction between lending apps and digital banking apps is disingenuous; a bank, which Carbon is, by default lends. Therefore, all banking apps are by default lending apps, broadly speaking”, he told another medium.
The new regulation is in response to grievances from loan app users, who claimed devious lenders are using the content of borrowers’ smartphones for harassment, defamation and blackmail.
According to the statement released by Google, the new regulation, which will be effective from May 31st, 2023 is purposed to address issues relating to misuse of personal data by loan apps.
“Apps that provide personal loans, or have the primary purpose of facilitating access to personal loans (i.e., lead generators or facilitators), are prohibited from accessing sensitive data, such as photos and contacts. This policy applies to apps, which offer loans directly, lead generators, and those, who connect consumers with third-party lenders,” it stated.
Google, in its April 2023 policy updates mandated Digital money lenders to comply with the regulatory guidelines for digital lending, which according to the company, may be amended from time to time.
“To operate as a Personal Loan App in Nigeria, it is mandatory for Digital Money Lenders (DML) to comply with the Limited Interim Regulatory/Registration Framework and Guidelines for Digital Lending, 2022 (as may be amended from time to time) set by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) of Nigeria.
“DMLs must also furnish verifiable approval letters obtained from the FCCPC. Loan Aggregators, on the other hand, are required to provide certification and documentation for their digital lending services, as well as contact information for every partnered DML.
“Additionally, upon request by Google Play, you must submit any supplementary information or documents to demonstrate your compliance with the regulatory and licensing requirements that are applicable to your operations,” Google authorized.
Prior to the policy update by Google, the FCCPC announced that 173 loan apps in Nigeria had been registered, out of these 173 only 119 have received full approvals and are fully licensed while 54 digital loan apps have conditional approvals. The registration is an outcome of its regulatory framework titled the “Limited Interim Regulatory/Registration Framework and Guidelines for Digital Lending 2022, which was released in August 2022 as a measure to curb the excesses of predatory digital lenders.
The commission gave digital money lenders a 90-day ultimatum to register for approval, which was later extended to January 31st, 2023.
According to Babatunde Irukera, chief executive officer of the FCCPC, the incessant infringement of people’s privacy and unscrupulous recovery practices led to the introduction of an interim registration framework for digital lenders in partnership with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
“What we did was to develop this framework, where we needed to know the people in the market, we needed to know who they were, what they were doing, the source of their money, what type of interest rates they were charging, and how transparent they were with respect to their customers.
“We also want to restrain what kind of information they are able to pull off people’s phones and what they’re able to do with that information, especially with respect to making contact with people on the contact list, and their loan recovery practices; the kind of language uttered, the times they call, what kind of things they say,” he stated.
“The companies that have been registered now are those, who have provided the transparency and the information that sufficiently establishes these facts. We have also partnered with Google to make sure that only companies that are approved under the framework can get on the Play Store because we recognize that that’s one of the most important ways for them to proliferate and get to their customers,” he added.
However, Irukera clarified that the registration is not a certainty that all the registered loan apps are law abiding but it will drastically reduce violation of Law. To buttress his point, he stated that the commission can effortlessly trace the registered companies and punish them accordingly if they violate the law.
The FCCPC has commended the policy update by Google, stating that it is a positive development of its partnership with google to sanitize the digital lending space as well as to address the invasion of borrowers privacy by loan apps.
On its official twitter page, the commission posted a tweet concerning the new policy which ensured consumer protection.
“FCCPC is transforming the way it works to ensure fair competition & consumer protection. Just did with digital loan apps. Partnered #ICPC, #EFCC, #NITDA, #CBN, #NCC & #NHRC to introduce interim registration framework; & Google to ban loan apps from accessing user contacts, photos”
Irukera, the CEO of FCCPC reacted to this post affirming that the battle won calls for celebration.
“One more battle won in a large war to protect the rights of consumers. We focus on the raging war, but celebrate the small wins too. We started out to confront this monster, & now Nigeria has led again with demonstrating desire and will to protect her own. One battle at a time!” he tweeted.
Reactions to this tweet by “@fccpcnigeria” signified that the new policy was a huge relief for loan app users, who have been victims of unethical recovery practices, harassment and blackmail from loan apps.
Tolu Ogunlesi, the Special assistant to President. Muhammadu Buhari on Digital & New Media in his response to the post stated that “Privacy violations have been a problem with loan apps in Nigeria for a while now, e.g. illegally accessing user contact lists and photos. @fccpcnigeria working to ensure that it no longer happens.”
Moyosore Lukmon Oloyede, a twitter user, who responded to this post commended the estimable efforts of the FCCPC.
“Data protection is a big deal. Government need to protect the people more with policies that will control unnecessary access to public data. Kudos to @fccpcnigeria for this laudable collaboration and commitment. It’s time to act against SM platforms too like TikTok, FB etc,” he tweeted.
“There is a grave danger that what started as a positive action will stifle innovation and hurt the smaller companies that are doing God’s work in financial inclusion. What’s worse is that there is already an uneven playing field between the fintech Davids and the Big Bank Goliaths.”
Abuse of access by loan apps
“Certainly in some emerging markets including Nigeria, I suspect the abuse of this data by many lending apps acted as a main driver. It works like this:
“Customer downloads lending app to borrow money; a precondition for the loan is providing access to their contacts and photos. If the customer defaults on a loan then to shame the customer to repay, the lender sends some or all the contacts of the borrower message.
“Clearly, this practice is abusive and goes against all privacy laws; Google is right to reduce the invasion of privacy. But in implementing this policy with not enough nuance, Google is cutting the legs off from some of the more innovative companies that are doing the Lord’s work, like Carbon,” he said.
The updated Google policy will be instrumental in protecting users from fintech loan apps who capitalise on the desperation of borrowers by giving out loans at outrageous interest rates. When these borrowers default, they resort to threatening them and sending defamatory messages to their contact list. The collaborative efforts of FCCPC, Google and other agencies will undoubtedly sanitize the Digital money lending industry in Nigeria.
FundQuest Financial Services Limited marked this year’s International Women’s Month with a renewed commitment to economic empowerment, hosting the inaugural FundHER by FundQuest Conference.
This initiative brought together over 100 women-led Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), providing them with actionable business insights, high-value networking, and, most importantly, access to funding.
Delivering the first keynote address, Dr. Jennifer Seidu, Principal Consultant, JV Management Consulting Limited, underscored the critical hurdles female entrepreneurs face: constrained access to funding, market expansion limitations, regulatory roadblocks, and operational inefficiencies.
She lauded FundQuest’s decisive intervention through FundHER, recognising the initiative as a timely and much-needed response to the financial inequities that women-led businesses encounter.
Joan Ediagbonya, Group Head, Brand Communication and Customer Experience at FundQuest, also reinforced these concerns with data, pointing out that while women own 45 per cent of SMEs in Nigeria, only 10 per cent have access to formal funding. Quoting Michelle Obama, she emphasised, “No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens.”
Similarly, Ms. Olubukola Olaigbe, CEO of Veedic Nigeria Limited, shared how accessing financing from FundQuest facilitated her logistics firm’s expansion, proving that with the right financial support, women entrepreneurs can achieve remarkable business growth.
Speaking on the future of FundHER, Mr. Abiodun Akinjayeju, Managing Director and CEO of FundQuest, made it clear that this initiative is here to stay. In his words; “If you educate a woman, you educate a nation; if you fund a woman’s business, you are funding the economy.”
Fidelity Bank Plc, leading financial institution, released its 2024 full-year Audited Financial Statements, reporting a 210% growth in Profit Before Tax to N385.2 billion.
According to the Bank’s results released on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) on Friday, 28 March 2025, Gross Earnings increased by 87.7% to N1,043.4bn, driven by 106.9% growth in interest and similar income to N950.6bn.
The increase in Interest Income was led by a combination of improved yield on earnings assets and 51.6% expansion in earnings base to N6.3tn. This led to a Profit After Tax of N278.1 billion, representing a 179.6% annual growth.
Commenting on the results, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, managing director/chief executive officer, Fidelity Bank Plc said, “We are delighted with our 2024 full-year (FY) performance, which showed strong growth across key revenue lines, improved asset quality, and significant traction in our strategic business segments.
“Our impressive results led to a triple-digit increase (210.0%) in Profit Before Tax (PBT), rising from N124.3bn in 2023 to N385.2bn in 2024.”
A further review of the financial performance revealed that the bank’s net interest income increased by 127.1% to N629.8 billion, driven by a high-yield environment in 2024.
To optimize its margin, the bank sustained its asset yields above funding cost by maintaining a high low-cost deposit profile at 92.6%. This led to an increase in its Net Interest Margin from 8.1% in 2023 FY to 12.0%.
Similarly, the bank continued to deepen its market share in both the corporate and retail segments, with customer deposits increasing by 47.9% from N4.0trn in 2023FY to N5.9trn. The increase was driven by strong double-digit growth across all deposit types.
The Retail Banking Business gained significant traction with savings deposits increasing by 28.8% to N1.1trn, marking the 10th consecutive year of double-digit annual growth in savings deposits.
Despite the difficult economic terrain in 2024, the bank has continued to support the real sector of the economy by increasing its Net Loans & Advances from N3.1tn in 2023FY to N4.4tn in 2024FY.
“This remarkable performance demonstrates our capacity to deliver superior returns to our shareholders. In line with our commitment to them, we have declared a final dividend of N1.25 per share, bringing our total dividend for the 2024 financial year to N2.10 per share”, explained Onyeali-Ikpe.
Having consistently paid dividends since 2006, Fidelity Bank will pay investors a total dividend of N2.10 per share for the 2024 financial year, subject to shareholders’ approval at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 29 April 2024. The dividend will be paid on 29 April 2025 to shareholders whose names appear on the register of members as of 15 April 2025.
It will be recalled that the bank successfully completed the first phase of its capital raising exercise through a Public Offer and Rights Issue in 2024, which were oversubscribed by 237.92% and 137.73%, respectively.
The positive result is a testament to the strength of the Bank’s franchise in the capital market. A total of N175.9bn was recognized as fresh capital in 2024 financial year from the exercise, which had a positive impact on its Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) at 23.5%.
The bank plans to conclude the second phase by Q3 2025, ahead of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s deadline, which will further strengthen its capital base and reaffirm its attainment of Tier 1 Bank status in the Nigerian Banking Industry.
Fidelity Bank Plc is a full-fledged commercial bank with over 9.1 million customers who are serviced across its 251 business offices and various digital banking channels in Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
The Bank is the recipient of multiple local and international Awards, including the 2024 Excellence in Digital Transformation & MSME Banking Award by BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards; the 2024 Most Innovative Mobile Banking Application award for its Fidelity Mobile App by Global Business Outlook, and the 2024 Most Innovative Investment Banking Service Provider award by Global Brands Magazine. Additionally, the Bank was recognized as the Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria by the Euromoney Awards for Excellence and as the Export Financing Bank of the Year by the BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards
The World Bank has approved a $500 million loan to Nigeria to support the country’s Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus Programme.
According to information obtained from the bank’s website on Sunday, the approval, which took place on March 28, 2025, marks a significant step in addressing Nigeria’s economic challenges through expanded access to livelihood support, food security services, and grants for poor and vulnerable households and firms.
The project, officially titled the NIGERIA: Community Action (for) Resilience and Economic Stimulus Program, aims to provide essential support to households affected by economic downturns and to bolster community resilience.
It also seeks to improve food security and create economic opportunities for populations most affected by recent economic disruptions.
According to the World Bank, the program represents a significant step toward addressing systemic vulnerabilities in Nigeria’s economy.
By channeling resources directly to underserved communities, the project should alleviate the burden of rising living costs while fostering sustainable growth.
The $500 million loan is not the only financial commitment Nigeria anticipates this week as two additional funding packages are in the pipeline, awaiting final approval.
One of the loans is valued at $80 million and will focus on accelerating nutrition outcomes across the country.
The second, worth approximately $552 million, is designed to enhance access to quality basic education nationwide as both projects are scheduled for final clearance on March 31, 2025.
These loans are part of the World Bank’s broader strategy to support Nigeria’s development priorities, most especially in areas such as healthcare, education, and poverty alleviation, while the institution emphasized the importance of implementing these programs efficiently to ensure maximum impact.
While the loans aim to address urgent socio-economic needs, Nigeria’s rising debt profile has raised concerns among stakeholders. Under the President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, the country has received approvals for 11 World Bank projects totaling 7.45 billion in less than two years. However, data from the Debt Management Office (DMO) reveal that only 774.99 million (about 16% of the approved amount) had been disbursed as of July 31, 2024.
This slow pace of disbursement has sparked debates about the efficiency of project execution and fund utilization
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