Court Upholds Nigeria Digital Lending Rules, Bars FCCPC from Telecom Licensing
A Lagos court upheld the FCCPC's 2025 DEON Regulations but ruled the agency cannot license telecom firms or oversee airtime lending, restoring enforcement powers.
A Federal High Court in Lagos upheld Nigeria’s Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations 2025 on Monday while stripping the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission of authority to license telecommunications companies or regulate airtime lending.
Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa delivered the ruling in Suit No. FHC/L/CS/760/2026 and dismissed the challenge brought by the Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria Ltd/Gte.
The court found that the DEON Regulations were issued within the FCCPC’s statutory powers under the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2018. It rejected WASPAN’s bid to nullify the entire framework but accepted the argument that FCCPC consumer-protection powers stop short of telecom licensing and airtime-lending oversight. Those functions remain exclusively with the telecom regulator.
The judgment discharged an interim ex parte order issued in April 2026 that had suspended enforcement of twelve paragraphs of the regulations. The FCCPC had paused implementation while the order remained in force. With the barrier removed, the commission stated that the regulations are once again fully operational and enforceable.
The DEON Regulations took effect on 21 July 2025. They require digital lenders using apps, USSD or online channels to register with the FCCPC, meet transparency and responsible-lending standards, protect borrower data and follow ethical debt-recovery practices.
Before the final ruling, WASPAN argued that the FCCPC lacked authority to regulate aspects of telecommunications touched by the DEON rules. A director of a WASPAN member, Ayo Stuffman, filed an affidavit supporting that position in April 2026. The court agreed on the licensing point but upheld the regulations’ validity overall.
The decision clarifies regulatory boundaries between the FCCPC and the Nigerian Communications Commission. Digital lenders that rely on non-telecom channels now face resumed FCCPC registration, monitoring and sanctions. Airtime-credit products offered through mobile networks stay outside FCCPC reach.
Stakeholders in Nigeria’s fintech and value-added services sectors gain a clearer map of compliance obligations. Pure digital lenders must prepare for active enforcement, while telco-linked lending products avoid dual oversight.
The legal impediment that had necessitated the Commission’s temporary suspension of implementation and enforcement of the DEON Regulations has been removed, and the Regulations are once again fully operational and enforceable.
The FCCPC is expected to resume registration and compliance checks immediately. Digital lenders and their investors will watch for the first enforcement actions and any further clarification on the airtime-lending carve-out.
