The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, on Tuesday unveiled the Nigeria Payments System Vision (PSV) 2028, outlining an ambitious roadmap to deepen financial inclusion, accelerate digital payments and position Nigeria as a leading player in the global payments ecosystem.
Speaking at the launch of the initiative, Cardoso said the CBN envisions a future where cash no longer dominates transactions, with digital payments becoming the preferred means of conducting business across the country.
“By 2028, cash should no longer be king. We need to do a lot more work to build trust and ensure people have no doubt they are dealing with a strong and reliable payment system,” he said.
The new payments strategy seeks to deepen payment infrastructure, expand financial inclusion, drive innovation and strengthen Nigeria’s integration with regional and global payment systems.
Cardoso described the vision as more than a financial sector initiative, saying it represents a blueprint for how Nigerians will transact, trade, save and invest in a rapidly evolving digital economy.
“Today, we don’t just unveil a payments strategy; we unveil a vision for how Nigerians will transact, trade, save, invest, and fully participate in a digital economy,” he said.
The CBN governor stressed that the initiative would require broad collaboration from stakeholders across the public and private sectors, insisting that its success depends on collective ownership and execution.
“PSV 2028 is not a government project. It is a Nigerian project,” he stated.
According to Cardoso, the apex bank will continue to provide the leadership and regulatory environment needed to support innovation while preserving financial stability.
“We will continue to promote innovation while safeguarding stability, strengthen oversight while encouraging competition, and work collaboratively with stakeholders to ensure that our payments ecosystem evolves in line with both global standards and national priorities,” he said.
He noted that payment systems have become critical infrastructure for economic growth and financial inclusion, rather than merely channels for transferring funds.
Cardoso said the vision aligns with broader reforms being implemented by the CBN to strengthen economic stability, facilitate trade, boost investor confidence and improve Nigeria’s external position.
The CBN governor expressed optimism that financial inclusion would rise to 95 per cent by 2028, bringing millions of Nigerians, including market women, farmers and young people, into the formal financial system.
“The goal is inclusion, not exclusion,” he said.
He also set a target of reducing fraud losses to less than one per cent of all transactions by 2028, stressing that public trust remains the foundation of any successful payments ecosystem.
“A payment system is only as strong as the trust people have in it,” Cardoso said, adding that the CBN wants Nigerians to feel safer keeping their money in the digital financial system than outside it.
Highlighting Nigeria’s growing influence in Africa’s financial technology sector, Cardoso said the country possesses the talent, scale and entrepreneurial capacity needed to produce globally competitive fintech companies.
“By 2028, Nigerian youth will launch the next global fintech unicorn right here from Lagos, Abuja, Calabar and beyond, using Nigerian data, Nigerian talent and solving Nigerian problems,” he said.
Cardoso added that the ultimate measure of PSV 2028’s success would be its contribution to economic growth, poverty reduction and improved living standards.
“We must work together to ensure that we execute. Ultimately, we must measure performance by one thing: how it impacts GDP. The journey is to impact the lives of the poor, lead people out of poverty and have an impact on the GDP,” he said.
He concluded that the success of the strategy would not be judged by the quality of the document itself but by its implementation and its ability to expand opportunities, strengthen trust, lower barriers to participation and build a payments ecosystem that serves every Nigerian.
