Regulatory dispute over Airtime Credit Services that occured recently has highlighted the increasingly important role of specialist technology infrastructure firms in Nigeria’s digital economy, with industry stakeholders saying that coordinated regulation will be essential to sustain investment, innovation and financial inclusion.

The controversy surrounding the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (FCCPC) Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending (DEON) Regulations, which temporarily disrupted Airtime Credit Services before proceeding to the Federal High Court, has brought into focus the growing convergence between telecommunications and digital finance.

Industry stakeholders argue that the episode underscored the need for regulatory alignment as technology providers continue to build the infrastructure supporting millions of digital transactions across the country.

Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, has consistently emphasised the importance of policy coordination in managing Nigeria’s expanding digital economy.

“Regulatory coordination is not only essential to preserving legal certainty but is also fundamental to promoting investment, innovation, consumer confidence and Nigeria’s long-term competitiveness as Africa’s leading digital economy,” the minister said.

He also directed that the existing regulatory status quo should remain while cross-cutting digital economy issues undergo inter-agency harmonisation under the ministry’s coordination, signalling government’s intention to avoid conflicting regulatory approaches as digital services continue to evolve.

Although consumers primarily engage with mobile network operators, much of the technology enabling airtime advances, data-on-credit and other digital financial services is developed and operated by specialist technology companies that provide artificial intelligence, automated credit decisioning, fraud management, transaction processing and collections infrastructure.

These firms have become an increasingly important layer of Nigeria’s digital infrastructure, enabling telecom operators and financial institutions to extend digital services to millions of customers in real time.

Among the companies operating in the space is Nairtime Nigeria Limited, the Nigerian operation of Optasia, which has operated in Nigeria since 2012. The company provides the artificial intelligence-powered platform supporting Airtime Credit Services while also offering credit scoring, automated lending infrastructure, fraud management, disbursement and collections capabilities.

The ecosystem also includes Creditswitch, which provides technology supporting airtime, data, messaging and USSD services across multiple networks; fonYou Technologies Nigeria, which supplies telecom software platforms, digital credit technology and financed airtime solutions; and ERL Telecoms Service Limited, an indigenous value-added service provider with longstanding operations in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector.

Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Gbenga Adebayo, said recent developments demonstrated that Airtime Credit Services have evolved into critical economic infrastructure.

“What this episode demonstrated is that airtime credit is not a financial product in the way regulators initially characterised it. It is economic infrastructure that approximately 40 million people use regularly, with the vast majority of them at the base of the economy,” he said.

Commenting on the Federal High Court judgment, Adebayo said the decision reinforced the importance of collaboration between regulators as digital services increasingly cut across traditional sector boundaries.

“The court has done something important. It has confirmed the FCCPC’s authority and, in the same breath, affirmed that the NCC’s role is preserved. Concurrency means coexistence. The industry now expects both regulators to establish the coordination framework that the court’s reasoning requires,” he said.

Chief Executive Officer of Nairtime Nigeria and Optasia Chief Commercial Officer, Uchenna Agbo, said that collaboration among regulators and industry participants remains critical to sustaining innovation.

“Fair financial access is at the heart of our business, and we are committed to working constructively with regulators and our partners as the legal process unfolds to promote a fair, transparent and inclusive digital ecosystem that benefits Nigeria and all Nigerians,” she said.

She noted that the widespread adoption of Airtime Credit Services reflects their growing importance to consumers who rely on mobile connectivity for communication, commerce and access to essential services.

Industry analysts note that technologies initially developed for airtime advances are increasingly being deployed across a broader range of digital financial services, including embedded finance, micro-credit, automated collections and fraud prevention.

They argue that as financial services become more deeply integrated into telecommunications platforms, regulatory certainty and coordinated oversight will play an increasingly important role in attracting investment, accelerating innovation and supporting the Federal Government’s ambition to build a globally competitive digital economy.