Nigeria Digitises Corporate Registry

By Jennete Ugo Anya

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) introduced fully digital incorporation supported by artificial intelligence tools while simultaneously deregistering over 400,000 inactive companies in 2025 to improve registry credibility.

During engagements with the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr. Mohammed Idris, Registrar-General (RG) of CAC, Mr. Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, outlined online registration, artificial intelligence (AI) assisted processes and compliance improvements tied to Nigeria’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.

Magaji: “Cleaning up the register was necessary to build confidence and ensure that Nigeria has a credible and reliable corporate registry.”
Idris: “Nigerians can now register companies online in the comfort of their homes.”

DECISION HIGHLIGHT

Combined reform actions:

• Digital company registration and AI documentation review
• Removal of 400,000 dormant entities
• Integration with anti-money laundering compliance framework
• Free registration of 250,000 MSMEs through Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN)

DECISION MEMO

The government is simultaneously widening and narrowing the corporate sector.

Digitisation lowers entry barriers while deregistration raises integrity thresholds. Instead of choosing between ease of doing business and regulatory enforcement, the state is sequencing them, expand participation first, then tighten credibility.

The removal of inactive companies addresses a structural weakness. Inflated registries distort economic data, obscure beneficial ownership and weaken financial monitoring. By pruning dormant entities, the registry shifts from a record of existence to a record of activity.

Digital registration completes the loop. Faster incorporation encourages informal operators to enter the formal economy, but once inside, traceability increases. The reform therefore exchanges anonymity for convenience.

AI plays a governance role rather than a service role. Automated verification reduces discretion and standardises compliance. Informality previously survived within administrative ambiguity. Automation removes that ambiguity.

The free Micro, Small And Medium Enterprise (MSME) registration programme signals another layer. Formalisation is being incentivised before enforcement intensifies. The state appears to recognise that surveillance legitimacy requires broad participation.

The broader outcome is a registry functioning both as a business gateway and a financial monitoring infrastructure. Incorporation becomes economic onboarding.

DATA BOX

Inactive companies removed: 400,000+
MSMEs registered free: 250,000
Service access: 24/7 digital incorporation
Compliance outcome: FATF grey list exit

WHO WINS / WHO LOSES

Wins
Active businesses benefiting from credible registry
Financial institutions verifying counterparties faster
Government compliance monitoring capacity

Loses
Shell and dormant entities used for opacity
Manual registration intermediaries
Informal operators dependent on anonymity

POLICY SIGNALS

Formalisation policy moving from enforcement led to platform led inclusion.
Corporate registry evolving into financial transparency infrastructure.
Ease of doing business now paired with data reliability objectives.

INVESTOR SIGNAL

Higher confidence in corporate verification and ownership data.
Reduced due diligence cost for transactions.
Incremental improvement in institutional credibility.

RISK RADAR

1 Informal sector resistance to traceability
2 Data security and identity misuse risks
3 Implementation inconsistency across agencies
4 Overregistration without economic activity
5 Enforcement gap after onboarding

The reform merges accessibility with accountability, turning registration into both an economic entry point and a monitoring mechanism.