Nigeria to Begin Nationwide Crackdown on Unregistered PoS Terminals in January 2026

CAC Mandates Registration Amid Financial System Risks

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) of Nigeria has declared a nationwide enforcement campaign against unregistered Point-of-Sale (PoS) operators, set to commence on January 1, 2026. This directive, announced on Saturday, December 6, 2025, aims to address the proliferation of PoS terminals operating without proper registration, which the commission states poses significant risks to the country's financial system and citizens' investments.

The CAC highlighted that the surge in unregistered PoS operations violates the provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020 and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Agent Banking Regulations. The commission described this as a 'reckless practice' often facilitated by some fintech companies, leading to concerns about fraud, financial losses, untraceable transactions, cybercrime, and broader national security threats.

Enforcement Measures and Compliance Requirements

Effective January 1, 2026, no PoS operator will be permitted to conduct business in Nigeria without being duly registered with the CAC. To ensure compliance, security agencies have been mandated to enforce the directive across the country.

The enforcement measures include:

• Seizure or shutdown of unregistered PoS terminals.
• Placing fintech companies enabling illegal operations on a watchlist and reporting them to the CBN for further action.

The CAC has urged all PoS operators, including sole agents, super agents, and aggregators, to regularize their business status immediately, emphasizing that compliance is mandatory.

Background and Industry Reaction

This crackdown follows earlier attempts by the CAC to formalize the operations of agent bankers since 2024, with previous registration deadlines (e.g., July 7, 2024, extended to September 5, 2024) largely unmet by a significant number of operators. The commission noted that these unregistered operations contribute to issues like unprofiled agents, cloned terminals, anonymous transactions, and weak Know-Your-Customer (KYC) processes.

The regulatory move has, however, met with resistance from some industry stakeholders. The National Association of Financial Inclusion Agents in Nigeria (NAFIAN) has questioned the CAC's directive, arguing that PoS agents are already extensively regulated under CBN guidelines and NIBSS registration. NAFIAN's National President, Fasasi Sarafadeen, stated that the association views the CAC's demand for additional registration as 'unnecessary' and potentially a 'revenue mobilisation' effort rather than a security objective, threatening legal action to challenge the enforcement plan.

Despite these concerns, the CAC maintains that formal registration is crucial for strengthening accountability, curbing fraud, and enhancing consumer protection within Nigeria's rapidly expanding agent banking sector, which boasts over 1.9 million PoS agents and processed N10.51 trillion in Q1 2025.