Legit.ng journalist Dave Ibemere has over a decade of business journalism experience with in-depth knowledge of the Nigerian economy, stocks, and general market trends.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has released a draft regulatory framework that mandates banks and other financial institutions to adopt artificial intelligence-powered anti-money laundering (AML) systems.

The guidelines apply to a broad range of financial entities, including deposit money banks such as Access Bank, UBA, and Zenith Bank, as well as microfinance banks, mortgage institutions, and fintech platforms regulated under the CBN.

The draft framework in a circular published on the CBN website dated May 20, 2025, and referenced BSD/DIR/CON/AML/018/033 was addressed to all financial institutions.

The apex bank stated that the proposed standards are in response to the growing digitalisation of Nigeria’s financial system and the increasing sophistication of financial transactions.

The CBN said:

"The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is committed to ensuring the integrity and stability of the Nigerian banking system.

"In recognition of the high level of digitalisation within the financial system and the rapid emergence of innovative products, the CBN has developed a draft document titled "Baseline Standards for Automated Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Solutions."

"The standard is aimed at promoting operational efficiency and ensuring regulatory compliance with AML/CFT/CPF requirements by financial institutions in Nigeria. It is informed by a comprehensive assessment of existing solutions within the industry and aligns with global best practices and international regulatory frameworks, including the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)."

The CBN expects all financial institution to align their AML solutions with these baseline standards within 12 months of the issuance of these standards.

While the standards are still in draft form, stakeholders have until June 13, 2025, to submit comments, after which the final framework will be issued, Punch reports.

Under the proposed framework, all regulated institutions must deploy intelligent AML systems capable of real-time transaction monitoring, anomaly detection, and behavioural pattern analysis.

These systems are required to integrate artificial intelligence and machine learning features to facilitate risk scoring, adaptive learning, and detection of high-risk activities such as large cash movements, cryptocurrency transactions, and suspicious cross-border payments.

Additionally, the systems must interface seamlessly with core banking applications and onboarding platforms, and include dashboards with real-time analytics, trend identification, and case management tools. Institutions are also expected to scale the systems to match their risk profiles and transaction volumes.

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has issued another warning to the public, calling for vigilance and caution in safeguarding personal and business bank accounts.

The different types of fraud have been identified, and Nigerians need to be careful.

The message to the public is part of EFCC's bid to combat rising incidents of bank fraud across Nigeria.

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Source: Legit.ng