The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cautioned that the rapid expansion of private digital payment platforms and stablecoins could undermine foreign exchange stability and intensify capital flow pressures in emerging markets.
CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, raised the concern during a plenary session at the G-24 Technical Group Meetings held on Thursday in Abuja.
Cardoso acknowledged that digital payment systems offer significant gains in financial inclusion and operational efficiency. However, he warned that they also introduce structural vulnerabilities requiring proactive and coordinated regulatory oversight.
According to him, the growth of digital platforms and stablecoins presents both opportunities and systemic risks for emerging economies. Without proper coordination, he said, such innovations could weaken monetary control and destabilise foreign exchange markets.
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“The opportunities of digital payments come with equally significant risks,” Cardoso stated, highlighting concerns around currency substitution, weakened monetary transmission, increased FX volatility, capital flow pressures, the systemic importance of non-bank payment providers, and regulatory arbitrage.
He further warned that uncoordinated cross-border digital payments could fragment jurisdictions, entrench dominant currencies and platforms, reduce interoperability, increase transaction costs, and erode the ability of Emerging Market and Developing Economies (EMDEs) to safeguard monetary sovereignty.
Cardoso stressed the need for global regulatory alignment to prevent fragmentation that could weaken developing economies’ capacity to manage liquidity and exchange rate stability effectively.
In her opening remarks, Director of the G-24 Secretariat, Iyabo Masha, said global growth remains uneven despite pockets of resilience.
Masha noted that while countries such as India are driving growth momentum on the back of strong domestic demand and digitalisation, others are grappling with weaker external demand and sluggish investment.
“In South Asia, countries like India are driving global growth momentum, spurred by strong domestic demand and advancements in digitalisation, while Pakistan is cautiously balancing recovery with ongoing reform needs,” she said. She added that parts of Latin America, including Mexico, continue to contend with modest growth and investment constraints.
According to her, the broader pattern across developing regions shows growth that lacks the depth required for sustainable, job-rich transformation and long-term convergence.
Nigeria has recorded a sharp rise in digital payment adoption in recent years, reflecting efforts to deepen financial inclusion and modernise its payment infrastructure.
The Group of 24 (G-24) is an intergovernmental coalition of 29 developing countries that coordinate positions on global monetary, financial and development issues. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the group meets at the ministerial level twice yearly on the sidelines of the meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Founded over five decades ago amid global economic uncertainty, the G-24 continues to serve as a platform for emerging and developing economies to harmonise positions on international economic governance.
