---
title: "NITDA Survey Says 59% Ready for CBN Data Localisation"
description: "A NITDA survey says only 59% of Nigerian banks and fintechs expect to meet the CBN January 1, 2027 deadline to host payment data locally."
canonical_url: "https://liners.com/news/nitda-survey-cbn-payment-data-localisation-readiness-2027"
markdown_url: "https://liners.com/news/nitda-survey-cbn-payment-data-localisation-readiness-2027.md"
type: "article"
language: "en"
published_at: "2026-10-29T09:00:52.298Z"
updated_at: "2026-10-29T09:00:52.300Z"
---

# NITDA Survey Says 59% Ready for CBN Data Localisation

A NITDA survey says only 59% of Nigerian banks and fintechs expect to meet the CBN January 1, 2027 deadline to host payment data locally.

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## In Short
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) says only 59% of banks, fintechs and other financial institutions in Nigeria are ready for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) deadline to host all payment data locally.

The target date is Jan. 1, 2027.

## What Happened
NITDA shared the survey findings during an Executive Regulatory Dialogue on the implementation of the National Sovereign Cloud Initiative and Data Localisation. The event was jointly organised by NITDA and the CBN.

In the survey results, 26 out of 44 financial institutions that answered the readiness question said they had completed, or were likely to complete, the required actions before the deadline. Fifteen institutions said completion was unlikely or very unlikely. Three institutions said they could not assess their readiness.

Dr Muhammad Lawal, Special Assistant on Policy to the Director General of NITDA, said the survey showed gaps in preparedness. He also said 22 of the 44 institutions had not started implementation, with budgeting, contract negotiations and system migration listed as outstanding tasks.

Lawal added that 79% of digital infrastructure providers surveyed said they were ready to accommodate new workloads from the financial sector. He said this suggests the challenge goes beyond infrastructure availability to deployment, contracting and migration.

The survey ran between Oct. 13 and Oct. 27 and received responses from 47 financial institutions and 42 digital infrastructure providers, although responses varied by question. Lawal said the findings were self reported, anonymised and aggregated, and did not amount to a compliance assessment.

## Why It Matters
The CBN says financial institutions must store and manage critical payment transaction data within Nigeria in line with regulatory requirements.

Dr Rakiya Yusuf, Deputy Governor for Financial System Stability at the CBN, said the deadline is meant to strengthen regulatory visibility, improve resilience and safeguard critical financial data. She also cautioned that data localisation alone would not guarantee security, and pointed to the need for cybersecurity, business continuity, disaster recovery and risk management.

Yusuf said financial institutions will remain accountable for risks tied to their relationships with cloud and other third party technology providers. She also called for collaboration among regulators, financial institutions and technology providers to address implementation challenges without undermining innovation or competitiveness.

## Sources and products

- [Nairametrics](https://nairametrics.com/2026/10/29/cbn-data-localization-rule-only-59-of-banks-fintechs-ready-for-january-deadline)

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