CBN Revokes 47 Microfinance Licences, Sycamore Blames Legacy Issues

What the CBN Enforced

The regulator did not single out any individual firm in its announcement. According to the CBN, the institutions failed to meet the conditions required to keep operating as licensed financial businesses. Cited breaches included holding insufficient assets to cover liabilities, shutting down operations without approval, prolonged inactivity, failing to begin operations within 12 months of approval, and not maintaining minimum capital unimpaired by losses.

The affected banks span more than a dozen states, including Lagos, Kano, Abuja, Ogun, Kaduna, and Rivers, and cut across Tier 1, Tier 2, and state categories. Named institutions include NowNow Digital MFB, Creditville MFB, Safegate MFB, Sycamore MFB, Gold MFB, and Entrepreneur MFB. Nigerian rules require national MFBs to hold ₦5 billion ($3.62 million) in paid-up capital, state MFBs ₦1 billion ($724,150), tier 1s ₦200 million ($145,729), and tier 2s ₦100 million ($72,865).

A separate case, Goldman Microfinance Bank, was treated more severely. The lender had already applied to be wound up, and the CBN described it as critically undercapitalised and in breach of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA), 2020. Its revocation took effect on May 21, while the other 46 became effective on July 1.

Fresh Uncertainty for Sycamore

Sycamore told TechCabal the revocation affects only the acquired entity, which it was still integrating into its group when the licence was swept into the CBN's review. The company said its consumer lending platform continues to operate under Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) approval, while its asset management arm, SIAML, remains licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission. It stressed that customer funds and investments remain secure and accessible.

The setback lands roughly two months after Sycamore told TechCabal it aimed to build a deposit base above ₦40 billion ($29.13 million) in 2026. Like several Nigerian fintechs, it chose to buy an existing MFB rather than pursue a fresh licence, a strategy that offers faster access to deposit-taking, payments rails, and cheaper funding.

A Tighter Market Ahead

The clean-up follows the completion of commercial banks' recapitalisation earlier this year and signals that the CBN's scrutiny now reaches deeper into the microfinance tier. It may also reshape fintech M&A: as dormant and non-compliant MFBs are pulled from the market, compliant acquisition targets are likely to become scarcer and pricier, while the CBN's willingness to review licences even after a change of ownership adds new risk to the buy-a-licence playbook.

Nigeria's central bank has withdrawn the operating licences of 46 microfinance banks, saying they no longer meet the requirements to function as licensed institutions.