This regulatory approval aligns with the apex bank’s ambitious target to scale monthly inward remittances to $1 billion by 2026. 

By authorising Finlogic to facilitate direct inward transfers, the CBN strives to capture private capital within the formal banking system, thereby supporting the stability of the Naira and enhancing national economic resilience.

The IMTO licensing allows Finlogic to operate with greater autonomy, bypassing traditional intermediaries to offer a more direct path for funds entering the country. 

This operational efficiency is expected to result in faster settlement cycles and improved pricing for the Nigerian diaspora, who remain a vital pillar of the nation’s financial stability.

Finlogic’s entry into the IMTO space is underpinned by its existing Money Services Business (MSB) licence from Canada. 

This dual-licence status establishes a secure, compliant corridor for North American inflows, ensuring that transactions meet the highest global standards of transparency and institutional security.

“Our commitment is to ensure that the contributions of Nigerians abroad are integrated into the domestic economy with absolute integrity,” said Joseph Afolabi, founder and CEO of Finlogic.

“This IMTO licence serves as a seal of trust, allowing us to provide a dependable gateway for inward transfers that directly contribute to Nigeria’s broader macroeconomic objectives.” 

Afolabi further emphasised that Finlogic’s seven-year trajectory has been defined by a focus on solving structural settlement challenges. 

“We have built a technology-led infrastructure designed to remove the friction associated with inward capital flows. By working closely with local banking partners, we are supporting the CBN’s mandate to maintain a transparent and robust foreign exchange market.”

As Nigeria seeks to double its official remittance receipts, the role of regulated, direct-access operators like Finlogic becomes increasingly central to the country’s financial inclusion and liquidity strategies.

The remittance was sent while the country’s foreign investment inflow remained uncertain throughout those years due to a lack of foreign money, which later caused the naira to collapse precipitously.

Remittances from Nigeria’s diaspora have made a significant contribution to reducing the negative effects of foreign exchange shortages and maintaining the nation’s foreign exchange reserve, according to data from the World Bank and Budget Office of the Federation.

Remittances to sub-Saharan Africa increased by 5.2% to $53 billion in 2022, according to the World Bank, with Nigeria receiving the highest portion.

According to data from the international bank, Nigerians living abroad sent home a total of $168.33 billion between 2015 and 2022.

A breakdown of the figures revealed that in 2015, the Diaspora remittance was $21.2 billion; it plummeted to $19.7 billion in 2016; and rose to $22bn in 2017.

It further stated that in 2018, it was $24.31 billion. It soon fell to $23.81 billion in 2019, and the pandemic caused it to fall to $17.21 billion in 2020. It came back stronger to $19.2 billion in 2021 and by 2022 the World Bank estimated that the inflows into the country had reached $20.9 billion.

Prior to 2020, Nigeria’s remittance inflows had only fallen below $20 billion once, when it fell to $19.7 billion in 2016. According to the World Bank, Diaspora remittance one of the top sources of non-oil foreign exchange for the country in 2022.

The NITDA DG made this known during a courtesy visit Dr. Bashir Obasekola, by the Continental Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Organization, Europe (NIDOE), to the Agency’s Corporate headquarters in Abuja.

As a very dynamic personality who has led the agency in attaining giant strides in different areas of its mandate over the years, Inuwa believes that fostering partnerships with Nigerians in the diaspora would enable the Nigerian government to tap into the vast opportunities offered by Nigerians with industry exposure in diaspora and provide a deeper sense of purpose to national development.

Inuwa, who was represented at the meeting by the agency’s Director of Information Technology Infrastructure Solutions department, Dr. Usman Gambo Abdullahi, hinted that partnering with NIDOE will provide a foundation that can be built on for further collaborations with Nigerians in the diaspora.

“NIDOE is the second largest Nigerians in diaspora organization across the world, and you being here is the beginning of a relationship we have been hoping to build”, he noted.

Speaking on his unflinching commitment to making the agency a high-velocity one, Inuwa disclosed that, through its Research and Development department, the agency has developed a Brain Circulation Strategic Program for 2023 by networking with people in the diaspora to drive the Research and Development ecosystem of the country.

While emphasizing the need for effective collaboration with Nigerians in the diaspora on the agency’s initiatives, Inuwa enthusiastically expressed the agency’s willingness to co-creating with them in the development of its regulatory instruments.

“Individually, Nigerians in the diaspora are making efforts and driving good initiatives but collectively, we can work to sustain all these initiatives which is why, in developing our regulatory instruments, we have open invitations for volunteers across the world”, he said.

The DG further revealed that the Code of Practice for social media, National Artificial Intelligence Policy, National Digital Skills Strategy (NDSS) and the National Outsourcing Strategy (NOS) are initiatives of the agency which were been currently subjected to stakeholders engagement and have attracted interests from Nigerians in diaspora in support of their development.

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Citing the LEAP event held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where 2 Nigerian startups won a $300,000 grant as an example, Inuwa believes that the engagement with NIDOE would further improve the flow of foreign direct investments into the country.

“This meeting is very important to us and we feel this is the beginning of the relationship we want to establish that will be mutually beneficial to Nigerians in the diaspora and to Nigeria.”, he concluded.

Giving his remark earlier, Dr. Bashir Obasekola appreciated NITDA for the warm reception and applauded the Agency for its immense contribution to the growth of the national economy.

He gave assurances of the organization’s support in collaborating with the Agency through effective training, mentoring, consultancy, investment and funding in areas of IT Research & Development, Cybersecurity, amongst other initiatives.