By Nana Musa
The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has mobilised key private-sector stakeholders to strengthen financial intelligence sharing and combat illicit financial activities.
This was contained in a statement issued by the NFIU Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Hafsat Abubakar Bakari, in Abuja on Thursday.
According to the statement, the initiative was unveiled during a high-level engagement organised with the support from the British High Commission and Convention for Business Integrity (CBi).
The engagement brought together regulators, banks, insurance companies, fintechs, Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), technology firms and other stakeholders.
They participated discussions was aimed at co-designing the proposed Joint Financial Intelligence Collaboration (JFIC).
According to the statement, the proposed JFIC seeks to provide a trusted platform for public and private institutions to share intelligence and identify emerging financial threats.
It was also expected to support efforts to disrupt illicit financial networks and strengthen the integrity of Nigeria’s financial system.
Bakari, was represented by the Unit’s General Counsel, Mr Felix Obiamalu, described the engagement as a decisive step.
She said that the initiative had progressed from consultation to design, commitment and implementation.
“We have moved from dialogue to design, to commitment and implementation,” the CEO said.
Bakari said that the stakeholders were now expected to determine the partnership’s structure, operations, value and sustainability.
“The objective is no longer simply to discuss the concept.”
She said that the partnership would be jointly designed to reflect stakeholders’ needs while delivering sustainable value to Nigeria’s financial intelligence architecture.
Mr Jehanzeb Khan, Illicit Financial Flows Officer, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), represented the British High Commission.
Khan reaffirmed the importance of stronger public-private collaboration in tackling illicit financial flows.
The Managing Director, Convention for Business Integrity, Mr Olusoji Apampa, said that the process was deliberately placed on the private sector at the centre.
Apampa said it would ensure the framework reflected operational realities and enjoyed broad stakeholder ownership.
The former Egmont Group Chair, Ms Xolisile Khanyile, urged Nigeria to adopt a practical, phased implementation approach.
“Trust, shared ownership and collaboration are the foundations of every successful public-private partnership,” she said.
She said that the initiative was timely and necessary, given Nigeria’s importance within the global Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing framework.
Khanyile, also a former Director of South Africa’s Financial Intelligence Centre, described private-sector participation as a national responsibility.
