Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) have announced a sweeping joint crackdown on unregistered Point of Sale (POS) operators across Nigeria, warning that the proliferation of unlicensed terminals poses a grave threat not only to the financial system but also to national security. The concerns were formally raised in Abuja on Thursday, June 25, 2026, when the Chairman of the CAC Board, Senator Ibrahim Idah, led a delegation on a courtesy visit to the Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Mr Ola Olukoyede, at the anti-graft agency's headquarters.
Senator Idah delivered a stark disclosure: only about 20 per cent of POS operators in Nigeria are currently registered with the CAC. This situation, he said, is a direct violation of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020 and the Central Bank of Nigeria's Agent Banking Regulations 2026, both of which mandate that all businesses operating under a business name must be duly registered. Idah warned that the low level of compliance is creating a dangerous loophole for criminals, with evidence increasingly suggesting that proceeds of crime, including ransom payments from kidnapping cases, are being routed through unregistered POS terminals. "Furthermore, Mr Chairman, we seek closer cooperation in developing a reliable database of POS operators for use by the EFCC and other law enforcement agencies," Idah stated.
The CAC chairman stressed that the mandates of both agencies are deeply interconnected. While the CAC registers and regulates companies, the EFCC investigates and prosecutes financial crimes. He argued that neither agency can effectively win the war against economic and financial offences if they work in isolation, especially when corporate entities are misused for fraud and money laundering. "A strong CAC registry makes the work of EFCC easier. Just as strong EFCC enforcement protects the integrity of the CAC corporate registry," Idah said. He proposed three key areas of collaboration: enhanced data and intelligence sharing on suspicious companies, joint public sensitisation campaigns on financial crime risks, and capacity-building programmes for staff of both agencies.
In his response, EFCC Chairman Olukoyede fully endorsed the partnership, describing the activities of unregulated POS operators as a "major challenge" to the nation's financial ecosystem. "If you do not regulate the activities of such key players, you will be having major problems and challenges within your financial ecosystem," he warned. Olukoyede disclosed that the EFCC has already established a dedicated desk to handle CAC-related matters and revealed that investigations into about 200 companies referred to the commission by the CAC have yielded "interesting discoveries" and "reasonable progress." He also noted that more than 80 per cent of financial crimes investigated by the EFCC involve procurement fraud and the use of registered companies as vehicles for illicit transactions.
The renewed partnership is expected to culminate in a review of the existing Memorandum of Understanding between the two agencies to strengthen cooperation, improve information sharing, and facilitate more effective reforms. The crackdown on unregistered POS operators is part of a broader national security strategy, as authorities have long identified the financial sector as a critical front in the fight against terrorism, kidnapping, and organised crime. With only one in five operators legally registered, the EFCC and CAC have drawn a firm line: the era of unregulated POS operations is coming to an end.
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