What to Expect from Nigeria’s New Acting Central Bank Governor Ade Shonubi

Nigeria’s new Acting Central Bank Governor Ade Shonubi is a Nigerian financial technology (fintech) expert and banker who served as the Managing Director of the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS) from 2012 to 2021.

NIBSS is a reputable organization in Nigeria that provides the infrastructure for automated processing, settlement, and transmission of inter-bank payments.

During his tenure at NIBSS, Ade Shonubi made significant achievements and contributions to the growth and development of the organization. Some of his notable achievements include:

1. Implementation of the Bank Verification Number (BVN) system: One of Ade Shonubi’s major accomplishments was the successful implementation of the BVN system in Nigeria. The BVN is a biometric identification system that assigns a unique number to every bank customer in the country, allowing for efficient identification and verification of customers across multiple banks. This initiative has helped in combating fraud, reducing identity theft, and enhancing the overall security of the Nigerian banking system.
2. Facilitation of the NIBSS Automated Payment System (NAPS): Completing single payments had hitherto been more efficient than making bulk transactions before Ade Shonubi partnered with the managing Director of SystemSpecs, John Obaro, to build the NAPS bulk payments processing platform. NIBSS provided the infrastructure and SystemSpecs was the technical partner. The NAPS platform essentially enabled banks and some high-volume transacting, non-bank aggregators upload thousands of records and successfuuly complete payments running into billions in record timeframes at low costs of transaction. This considerably improved salary, dividends, pensions and welfare disbursement initiatives by optimizing the payment systems powering these.
3. Introduction of the Nigerian Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) platform: Under Shonubi’s leadership, NIBSS introduced the NEFT platform, which is a secure, efficient, and reliable electronic funds transfer system. This platform enables individuals and businesses to transfer funds electronically between different banks in Nigeria, eliminating the need for physical cash transactions and reducing the associated risks and costs.
4. Development of the Nigerian Instant Payment (NIP) system: Ade Shonubi played a key role in the development and deployment of the NIP system, which allows for instant electronic payments between banks in Nigeria. This system has revolutionized the way transactions are conducted in the country, providing individuals and businesses with a fast and convenient payment option that operates round-the-clock.
5. Promoting financial inclusion: Shonubi focused on driving financial inclusion in Nigeria by leveraging technology and innovative solutions. Under his leadership, NIBSS launched initiatives such as the Shared Agent Network Expansion Facility (SANEF), which aimed to increase the availability of banking services in underserved areas through the use of agent banking. This helped to extend financial services to previously unbanked or underserved individuals and small businesses.
6. Collaboration with stakeholders: Ade Shonubi fostered collaboration and partnerships with various stakeholders in the Nigerian financial sector, including banks, regulatory bodies, and other fintech companies. His efforts in promoting collaboration and cooperation among industry players contributed to the overall growth and stability of the Nigerian banking system.

Ade Shonubi’s tenure as the Managing Director of NIBSS saw significant advancements in the Nigerian payment system landscape, with the introduction of innovative solutions and the strengthening of the country’s financial infrastructure. His expertise and contributions have played a crucial role in transforming and modernizing the Nigerian banking sector.

“He is very smart, very dogged, maybe even stubborn. So he will stick to his guns even on unpopular opinions,” a source who worked closely with Shonubi told MoneyCentral.

“His background is mainly operations from the bank. He is on the FIRS Board as well. From the little I know about him, he will do well.”