E-Business
How Hosting Locally Reduces the Impact of Foreign Exchange Fluctuation

When organizations want to host their content, they look for a hosting platform that gives them efficient, high speed, and cost-effective service, so their content can be accessed quickly.
But while businesses and agencies in Nigeria have this same expectation, many unwittingly opt for service providers that cost them this speed and cost-effectiveness they crave. They host their data with foreign data centers.
Several consequences follow from hosting with foreign service providers. Upload and download times could be slower because the data centers are far away from the business that stores and accesses the data. There are data sovereignty issues as well; it’s not always clear whether it’s the business’s home country or the data center’s host country that has administrative rights over the data.
There’s another problem that businesses get exposed to when they use foreign hosting platforms. It’s a problem with unstable currency exchange rates.
The Exchange Rate Problem
Organizations also have to pay for the hosting services provided from beyond their borders in foreign currency. If a company in Nigeria hosts its content with a cloud firm in the United States, it will pay that firm for its services in dollars.
According to the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA), the country loses up to ₦60 billion worth of foreign exchange to other countries every year as payments for web hosting services. As of 2016, less than 2% of domain names were registered in Nigeria.
There’s a problem with this. If most establishments with a web presence in Nigeria rely on foreign hosting, they will be exposed to fluctuations in foreign exchange. If the dollar becomes more expensive relative to the naira, they will have to spend more to pay hosting fees.
Let’s explain this with a simple example.
Suppose Company A in Nigeria hosts its website with a hosting firm B in the United States. The Nigerian company A pays the hosting firm B $700 annually for its hosting services.
If the current dollar-naira exchange rate is ₦360 to $1, the Nigerian company will be spending an equivalent of ₦252,000 on hosting in one year.
But if the naira slumps and the exchange rate becomes ₦400 to $1, the Nigerian firm will have to pay ₦280,000 in hosting fees in a year.
That’s a difference of ₦28,000.
How a Fluctuating Exchange Rate Affects Business Hosting Budgets
One thing becomes immediately apparent: companies can’t be sure how much they will have to pay for hosting when they are drawing up their budgets. Even if the cost remains constant in dollar terms, the unstable exchange rate ensures that you can’t be certain about how much naira you will be set aside for it. This uncertainty makes planning difficult and may frustrate the efforts of businesses and agencies to streamline their expenses.
Higher costs also eat into budgets and reduce net business incomes. For organizations that consider their expenditure on this front as significant, a local currency that continually depreciates against the dollar could be eroding their efforts to turn out significant profits.
The Impact of Forex Payments for Hosting on Nigeria’s Economy
The exchange rate problem exerts significant pressure on the wider economic scale. Taken together, local companies are paying millions of dollars in scarce foreign exchange to foreign hosting firms. When these payments are made, Nigeria is left with fewer dollars. And when there are fewer dollars, the demand for them will push their naira-price higher.
Local companies suffer as a result. They may be paying the same rates in dollar terms, but they are spending more naira to make the payment.
In a nutshell, companies that use foreign hosting firms are contributing to a problem that they are already suffering from.
The Remedy: Local Hosting
There’s a solution to the uncertainty, rising costs, and economic problems that foreign hosting brings. It’s called local hosting. Instead of spending dollars on this service, companies in Nigeria can switch to local hosting firms.
Here are some advantages that businesses can gain from local hosting, in terms of exchange rate issues and costs.
- They won’t have to contend with fluctuating rates and the confusion that comes with it. They can simply pay for hosting in naira.
- Rates don’t ‘change’ abruptly. Customers will usually be notified when fees have been reviewed upwards or downwards.
- There’s greater certainty around the costs that the company is incurring.
- The fees are fixed and denominated in naira, so it’s easier to plan and budget.
- The country saves scarce foreign exchange.
There are also other benefits besides the gains from denominating fees in local currency. When you host your data locally, you have more access to it. It’s easier to keep in touch with the hosting platform. Security concerns are diminished. And there’s no concern about data sovereignty.
Local Hosting: What Options Do You Have?
As Nigeria has grown more reliant on data and digital technology, cloud service providers and managed IT service companies have sprung up within its borders to fill the storage and computing needs of its many businesses. Many of these have been around for just a few years. A few have been in operation for much longer.
The quality of service you get from local hosting firms will vary as well. Some can leverage their extensive experience in the Nigerian environment, and provide high-level skill and support to their clients. But this isn’t the case for every player in this space.
Layer3 is one of the long-lived data hosting institutions in Nigeria. For over 14 years, it has helped organizations in the private and public sectors with the data storage and network solutions they need to thrive. And it continues to improve its offerings, as technology evolves and the demands of the IT market change.
Its virtual data centers and servers, backup and disaster recovery services are available to emerging businesses, large corporations, and public sector agencies, and are tailored to suit organizations from a wide range of sectors.
If you would like to find out more about Layer3 and local hosting, you can contact our team here.
E-Business
FG Partners UK to Combat Cross-border Cyber-crime

The federal government and the United Kingdom signed an agreement Tuesday to combat the growing threat of cyber-crime. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed following a courtesy visit by David George Hanson, minister of the home office, UK, to the Nigeria Police Force headquarters, Louis Edet House in Abuja.
Transnational crime is a big problem for both the UK and Nigeria, so the governments intend to strengthen existing collaboration efforts to crack down on cyber-criminals and protect their industries from unlawful activities.
Offences such as online fraud, identity theft, digital extortion, and ransomware , operate across many jurisdictions, and frequently necessitate sophisticated cooperation efforts, according to the two governments during a press conference.
Furthermore, Lateef Fagbemi, Nigeria’s attorney-general and minister of justice, established the Joint Case Team on Cybercrime, which aims to address the need for a coordinated and robust approach to combating cybercrime, as stated in the Cybercrimes Act of 2015, which criminalises cyber-related offences.
Hanson underlined the importance of ongoing cooperation efforts to combat international crime in a number of areas, affecting vulnerable individuals.
He said: “We need to look again at how we can build cooperation between the Federal Government, the federal police, and our police forces and National Crime Agency to take action against these international criminals, who are exploiting vulnerable people in a whole range of areas. The National Crime Agency, the Home Office Fraud Department, and the High Commission need to make sure we make a big impact on this transnational crime.”
“The collaboration between the Nigerian Police Force and National Crime Agency continues to serve as a model in international law enforcement cooperation. We have successfully conducted joint operations into many cases of cybercrimes and online fraud. With your [UK government] cooperation, we have continued to bust other criminal networks around the world,” added inspector-general of Nigerian Police Force, Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun.
E-Business
CAC to Prosecute Business Owners Operating Without Registration

Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has reaffirmed its commitment to enforcing business registration laws in Nigeria, warning that individuals and organizations operating unregistered businesses will face prosecution.
In a statement, the CAC emphasized that conducting business without proper registration violates the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020, undermining transparency and accountability in the corporate sector.
The commission stressed that registration is not only a legal requirement but also a gateway to formal business opportunities, including access to bank loans, government grants, and partnerships.
The enforcement drive will be nationwide, targeting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), online vendors, and informal traders who have failed to comply despite previous awareness campaigns and registration amnesty windows.
The CAC disclosed that enforcement teams, in collaboration with security agencies, will be deployed to identify and prosecute defaulters.
The commission urged business owners to take advantage of its simplified registration platform to regularize their status, noting that compliance will boost investor confidence and improve Nigeria’s ease of doing business. It warned that ignorance of the law will not be accepted as an excuse.
Business owners are advised to act promptly to avoid legal consequences, as the CAC moves to ensure a more structured and regulated business environment in Nigeria.
E-Business
NCC Vows to Tackle Online Infringement, Block Illegal Music Websites

Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has pledged to enforce its legal obligations to combat online intellectual property infringement and urged commercial music users to obtain proper licences from rights holders or their representatives.
The Commission stated that this ensures creators are fairly compensated, supporting the music industry’s sustainable growth.
In a statement commemorating the 2025 World Intellectual Property Day, themed “IP and Music: Feel the Best of IP,” the NCC announced plans to enforce the Copyright Act 2022, which allows for the takedown of infringing materials and blocking of websites hosting illegal content.
Signed by Mrs Ijeoma Egbunike, director of Public Affairs, the statement outlined an aggressive anti-piracy campaign in collaboration with the private sector, targeting the online environment.
Egbunike affirmed the NCC’s commitment to establishing enforceable standards for transparency, digital audits, and real-time royalty reporting to protect creators’ rights. She stated, “The NCC will continue to champion policies that support the growth of the music industry, improve the livelihoods of Nigerian musicians, and foster a culture of creativity and respect for intellectual property.”
Despite the global success of Afrobeats and other Nigerian genres, the NCC noted that many musicians face low royalty returns due to rampant digital piracy.
To address this, the Commission revised its Collective Management Regulations to enhance transparency and accountability among Collective Management Organisations (CMOs).
The NCC emphasised that proper licensing is a legal obligation and vital for Nigeria’s creative economy, stating, “Music must feel the beat of intellectual property for the full potential of creativity to be realised.”
The Commission highlighted that creators’ livelihoods depend on fair royalty compensation.
Recent enforcement measures include the NCC’s designation by the Attorney-General of the Federation as an authority under the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act 2022.
This, combined with the Copyright Act 2022, empowers the NCC to order takedowns and block illegal music distribution websites.
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