Regulatory Alerts2026-03-10 | BSD/DIR/PUB/LAB/019/002Issuance of Baseline Standards for Automated Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Solution for Financial Institutions in Nigeria
The Central Bank of Nigeria has issued mandatory Baseline Standards for Automated Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism, and Countering Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/CPF) solutions across all financial institutions to enhance detection and reporting of suspicious transactions. Deposit Money Banks must achieve full compliance within 18 months, and Other Financial Institutions within 24 months from March 10, 2026, necessitating implementation roadmap submissions within three months. These standards require automated systems to support real-time risk assessment, transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, fraud detection, case management, and robust data protection, with non-compliance leading to administrative sanctions and penalties.