SEC tasks market operators on sustained compliance culture after Nigeria’s exit from FATF grey list

By Abubakar Yunusa

The Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr. Emomotimi Agama, has urged financial sector stakeholders to strengthen and sustain a culture of proactive compliance to safeguard Nigeria’s position in the global financial system following its recent exit from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey List.
Speaking at the Nigerian Capital Market Institute Compliance Summit on Monday, Agama described the gathering as crucial to the future of the country’s financial markets, noting that discussions at the summit touch “the very heart of the market’s integrity, stability and future.”
Agama said Nigeria’s removal from the FATF Grey List was a major national achievement and a strong global endorsement of the country’s resolve to strengthen its Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) framework.
He said: “This was not a mere administrative update; it was a resounding global affirmation of our collective and unwavering commitment”.
Crediting the success to the joint efforts of public and private sector institutions, he commended operators, regulators and compliance professionals for their roles in achieving the milestone.
The SEC boss, however, cautioned that the exit should not be seen as the end of the journey.
“Exiting the grey list is not the finish line; it is the starting block for a new race. The world is watching,” he said.
Agama stressed that international investors and global financial institutions will continue to monitor Nigeria to determine whether the reforms are sustainable and whether the country’s compliance culture is deeply entrenched.
He said the theme of the summit underscored the need to shift from compliance driven by external pressure to a more strategic, proactive and permanent culture of adherence to global standards.
“Robust compliance is no longer a regulatory burden; it is our single most powerful competitive advantage. A compliant market is a transparent market, and a trustworthy market is the destination for capital.”
According to him, Nigeria’s strengthened compliance regime signals to the international community that the country is “open for business, safe, secure and sophisticated.”
Agama called for continuous improvement across institutions, especially through the adoption of RegTech and SupTech solutions, regular training of compliance officers, and promotion of ethical conduct across the financial services ecosystem.
He assured stakeholders that the SEC would continue to provide strong regulatory guidance, constructive supervision and the necessary engagement to keep Nigeria aligned with global standards.
The SEC DG urged participants at the summit to share insights and develop practical solutions that will “future-proof” the Nigerian capital market.
“Let us work together to ensure that Nigeria never again finds itself on that list,” Agama said, expressing hope that the country would instead feature among the world’s most resilient and compliant emerging markets.
In her remarks, Executive Commissioenr Legal and Enforcment at the SEC, Ms. Frana Chukwuogor said the capital market has a new law that was signed by the President in 2025 saying that one of the greatest challenges that compliance officers and even market operators face, when there’s a change in regulation is that they don’t have enough information on what has changed.
She said “How can you be compliant if you don’t know what has changed? So our focus here today is to bring the attention, call the attention to some of the new issues, some of the new areas that may pose risks to them and the market.
Ms. Chukwuogor said Some of those issues will deal with some of the threats being faced with Ponzi schemes and digital assets.
“All of you remember that this October, this just past October, we were removed from the gray list. So, yes, we want every participant, every capital market operator, especially the CEOs, to first know, to compel the people who work with them, especially the compliance officers, to learn the new issues that the Investment and Securities Act 2025 requires of them.
The Executive Commisisoner disclosed that the Commission intends to measure compliance by ensuring that operators file returns adding that failure to do so could result in sanctions.