The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN), creating a framework for cooperation on financial innovation between Nigeria and Singapore.
The agreement provides a basis for linking relevant institutions and innovation ecosystems and for identifying practical areas of cooperation.
It was signed during a series of engagements by the CBN delegation in Singapore, led by Governor Olayemi Cardoso, on his way to the IMF–World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok.
Earlier in Singapore, the delegation held talks with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) on financial sector development, regulation, market connectivity and innovation. Both sides identified areas of mutual interest for continued engagement and possible collaboration.
Cardoso also addressed investors at the Nigeria–Asia Financial Connectivity Dialogue, held at J.P. Morgan’s Singapore offices. He said the true measure of Nigeria’s reforms is whether capital stays and grows, not whether it can be attracted once.
“The real test of reform is not whether you can attract capital once; it is whether you create the confidence for capital to stay, return and grow,” he said.
The Dialogue was convened by the CBN with J.P. Morgan, the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) and FMDQ Group, and anchored by Dapo Olagunji, Managing Director of J.P. Morgan West Africa. It drew investors, financial institutions, businesses and Nigerians living and working across Asia.
The governor said Nigeria aims to build deeper, more liquid and internationally connected financial markets, with recent reforms serving as the foundation for a new phase of development.
He said changes to the foreign exchange market were meant to remove distortions, restore transparency and strengthen confidence in the rules governing participation.
Cardoso named credible monetary policy, stronger governance, better-functioning markets and predictable rules as the conditions needed for sustained domestic and international investment.
Stabilisation, he said, is not an end in itself but a base for wider participation by long-term institutional investors, stronger market infrastructure and better links to global financial markets.
On Asia, he said Nigeria’s engagement should go beyond attracting investment flows to building lasting relationships among financial institutions, markets, businesses and people.
He pointed to opportunities for closer ties between Nigerian and Asian banks and market institutions, more efficient payment and settlement channels, and greater participation by Nigerians in the region.
The governor also spoke on the growing role of financial technology and artificial intelligence in improving financial services, strengthening risk management, supporting inclusion and enhancing regulatory capabilities.
A panel moderated by Gbolahan Taiwo, J.P. Morgan’s Chief Economist for Africa, followed. Panellists were Temi Popoola, Group Managing Director and CEO of NGX Group; Zeal Akaraiwe, Group Managing Director and CEO of FMDQ Group; Aderinola Shonekan, the CBN’s Director of Trade and Exchange; and Olumayokun Ajibade, Special Adviser to the Governor on Financial Markets and Economic Policy.
They discussed Nigeria’s reform path, from capital formation and foreign exchange market confidence to deeper markets and the infrastructure needed to sustain international participation.
The Singapore engagements form part of a wider programme of institutional and market meetings across Asia, which will include further talks in Beijing.
