Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, on Thursday, cautioned that the growing adoption of stablecoins and private digital payment platforms could increase foreign exchange volatility and capital flow pressures, systemic importance of non-bank payment providers, and regulatory arbitrage and fragmentation as well as weaken monetary policy transmission in emerging economies.
He stated this at the opening ceremony of the G-24 Technical Group Meeting in Abuja, where he delivered a plenary address titled “Digital Cross-Border Payments, Global Finance, and Economic Transformation – Opportunities and Risks.”
He noted that even though digital innovation presents a historic opportunity to address inefficiencies in cross-border payments, it must be approached with caution to preserve macroeconomic stability.
“Without coordination, digital cross-border payments risk becoming fragmented across jurisdictions, entrenching dominant currencies and platforms, reducing interoperability, increasing costs and undermining the ability of Emerging Market and Developing Economies to safeguard monetary sovereignty,” Cardoso said.
The CBN governor noted that cross-border payments remain slow, costly and fragmented, particularly for developing economies, adding that with global remittance corridors costing over 6.0 per cent, settlement lags of several days, and compliance burdens that exclude MSMEs, millions remain disconnected from global opportunity.
