Nigeria moves to establish Lagos International Financial Centre

Nigeria has taken a major step towards establishing the Lagos International Financial Centre (LIFC), following the inauguration of a National Steering Committee comprising the Federal Government, Lagos State Government and private-sector representatives.

The committee was inaugurated in Abuja on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, as part of efforts to establish an internationally competitive financial centre capable of attracting global capital and strengthening Nigeria’s position in the international financial system.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, who inaugurated the committee, said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had endorsed the LIFC as a strategic national economic priority and directed his office to coordinate Federal Government support for the initiative.

Akume said the project presented an opportunity to leverage Lagos’ strategic position and Nigeria’s economic potential to develop a financial centre of international standing.

The National Steering Committee brings together key Federal institutions responsible for finance, justice, foreign affairs, immigration, trade and investment, communications and taxation, as well as the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Lagos State and the private sector, represented by EnterpriseNGR, are also part of the implementation structure.

The development marks a significant expansion of the initiative, which was launched by the Lagos State Government in partnership with EnterpriseNGR and has undergone extensive consultations with government agencies, regulators, private-sector stakeholders and international partners over the past two years.

Under the new framework, the Federal Government will provide the national policy and institutional architecture, while Lagos State will continue to lead development of the centre as the host jurisdiction. EnterpriseNGR will represent Nigeria’s Financial and Professional Services sector in the design and implementation process.

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Speaking at the inauguration, Lagos State Governor and Chairman of the LIFC Council, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, described the proposed centre as “strategic national infrastructure.”

Sanwo-Olu said the LIFC should not be viewed merely as a Lagos project but as an instrument of Nigeria’s long-term economic development strategy.

According to him, international financial centres are deliberately established to mobilise long-term capital, deepen financial markets, create trusted jurisdictions and connect domestic economies with international investment.

He said Lagos’ ambition was to establish Africa’s premier international financial centre and create a trusted gateway through which global capital could access investment opportunities in Nigeria and across the continent.

The governor stressed that the success of the centre would depend on institutional trust, regulatory quality, legal certainty and international connectivity.

He also ruled out the use of the LIFC as a tax haven or a platform for regulatory arbitrage and illicit financial activities, saying its competitiveness would instead be built on transparency, predictability and strong institutions.

Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial and financial hub, hosts a large concentration of banking, capital markets, insurance, fintech, investment and professional services companies, providing what stakeholders believe is the ecosystem required to anchor an international financial centre.

The state government is expected to continue leading critical areas of the project, including infrastructure, planning and the development of Lagos-specific legislative and institutional frameworks.

However, Sanwo-Olu said the benefits of the initiative must extend beyond Lagos and contribute to Nigeria’s broader economic development.

He linked the project to the Federal Government’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy by 2030, saying achieving such an economy would require deeper pools of capital, stronger financial intermediation and greater investor confidence.

Chairman of EnterpriseNGR and Co-Chairman of the LIFC Council, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, described the partnership between the Federal Government, Lagos State and the private sector as evidence of what could be achieved when institutions work towards a common economic objective.

Aig-Imoukhuede said the ability to attract international capital would depend largely on whether investors considered Nigeria safe, predictable and capable of delivering opportunities for growth.

He said the LIFC had reached an advanced stage of development, with work already undertaken on its strategic blueprint, legal and regulatory framework, business plan, institutional operating model and implementation economics.

Specialist workstreams are also focusing on legal and regulatory reforms, institutional capacity and the international positioning of the centre.

KPMG is supporting the project office, while TheCityUK is providing international technical support funded by the UK Government.

Aig-Imoukhuede said the promoters were working towards a soft launch of the LIFC in the first quarter of 2027.

Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, pledged Federal Government support in creating the legal framework required to strengthen investor confidence.

Fagbemi said the government would identify Federal and sub-national laws that might require amendment, enhancement or repeal to support the operation of the centre.

Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, called for a swift transition from planning to implementation, urging stakeholders to develop a model suited to Nigeria’s constitutional, legal and economic realities rather than simply copying existing international models.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, described the LIFC as a catalytic initiative capable of supporting Nigeria’s drive towards a $1 trillion economy.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also pledged to support the initiative through Nigeria’s diplomatic network, investment diplomacy, international advocacy and strategic partnerships.

Stakeholders said the LIFC could ultimately help deepen Nigeria’s capital markets, attract foreign investment, create higher-value jobs, strengthen professional services and provide financing for productive sectors such as infrastructure, technology, agriculture and manufacturing.

The initiative comes as African jurisdictions increasingly compete for international capital, financial transactions, businesses and professional talent.

With Federal Government backing, Lagos State’s jurisdictional leadership and private-sector participation through EnterpriseNGR, stakeholders believe the LIFC could position Lagos as a major international financial hub and strengthen Nigeria’s role as a gateway between global capital and opportunities across Africa.