INVESTORS DEMAND REFUND OF N100.35M FROM CBN OVER SUSPENDED FINANCE HOUSE LICENCE
Read Time:2 Minute, 23 Second
By Aishat Momoh. O.
Investors behind the proposed Coin Finance Company Ltd have asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to refund N100.35m paid for a finance house licence, alongside applicable interest, following the suspension of new licence applications.
The investors’ representative, Mr Christopher Itua, made the demand in a statement issued on Sunday, saying the funds had remained with the apex bank for about 15 months without progress on the proposed institution.
According to Itua, the investors paid N100m as capital deposit, N100,000 as application fee and N250,000 as licensing fee on July 16, 2025, bringing the total to N100.35m.
The payments were made as part of the requirements for licensing Coin Finance Company Ltd as a finance house.
However, Itua said CBN officials informed the promoters in October 2025 that the processing of new finance house applications had been suspended until further notice.
Following the suspension, he wrote to the CBN Department of Financial Policy and Regulation on October 15, 2025, requesting a refund of the funds with applicable interest.
The promoters subsequently petitioned the CBN Consumer Protection Department on May 18, 2026, and sent a follow-up letter on July 7, but said they had received neither a refund timeline nor a substantive update.
“It has now been over 14 months since the CBN took possession of our capital,” Itua said in his latest appeal to the CBN Governor.
He explained that the proposed finance house was designed to address financing gaps at the grassroots and stimulate economic activity among small businesses and entrepreneurs.
“The Finance House is meant to boost grassroots empowerment, a sector that is very important to strengthening the micro economy,” he said.
Itua argued that inadequate financial institutions serving small businesses and grassroots entrepreneurs remained a major constraint despite improvements in the broader macroeconomic environment.
“The macro is doing well, but the micro is not. This is the missing link because there are not enough institutions to power that sector,” he said.
He added that the prolonged retention of the capital had stalled the promoters’ plans to establish the institution and provide financial support to grassroots businesses.
The investors are asking the CBN to calculate applicable interest on the N100.35m from July 16, 2025, when the funds were deposited, until the date of repayment.
“The prolonged silence and structural failure to return capital deposits directly undermines the Federal Government’s ease-of-doing-business initiatives,” Itua said.
The promoters said they had submitted payment receipts, transaction documents and previous correspondence to support their request.
Itua appealed to the CBN Governor to intervene and resolve the matter administratively, noting that the promoters had repeatedly used the bank’s established channels.
The investors warned that continued inaction could compel them to pursue further administrative and legal options, although they preferred to resolve the matter without escalation.
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0