CBN Revokes Licences of Non-Compliant Bureau De Change Operators

The Central Bank of Nigeria has confirmed that all legacy Bureau De Change operators who failed to meet the revised licensing requirements have automatically lost their authorisation to operate.
The clarification came through a recently released document explaining ongoing reforms in the BDC segment.

The regulator earlier confirmed that only 82 operators successfully met the new standards and were issued fresh licences. The latest announcement follows an extended compliance period granted to operators after the introduction of new capital and regulatory requirements.

Under the revised rules, BDCs were initially granted six months—ending in December 2024—to satisfy the new minimum conditions. The deadline was later extended by another six months to encourage more operators to comply. The central bank has now enforced a final cutoff, declaring that all operators who failed to meet the requirements by the end of November are no longer recognised and should not conduct foreign-exchange business.

The bank encouraged the public to refer to its official website for the updated list of legally operating BDCs. It also noted that it would continue accepting applications from prospective promoters, though it reserves the right to halt licensing at any time.

The regulatory overhaul is part of broader efforts to strengthen transparency, enforce compliance, and stabilise the foreign-exchange ecosystem. The new framework, introduced in 2024, requires Tier-1 BDCs to meet a minimum capital base of N2bn and Tier-2 operators to meet N500m.