The Lagos International Financial Centre (LIFC) project continues to gain momentum as EnterpriseNGR, in partnership with the Lagos State Government and TheCityUK (funded by the UK Government), advances Nigeria’s ambition to establish a globally competitive financial centre.
Phase I of the project, completed earlier this year, produced a comprehensive report that assessed international best practices, identified Lagos’ unique strengths, and recommended a preferred model for the LIFC. The study confirmed Lagos’ strong potential to emerge as Africa’s leading international financial hub, driven by its dynamic private sector, robust financial services base, and strategic geographic positioning.
Importantly, Phase I identified three Unique Selling Points (USPs) for the Lagos IFC:
- Innovation and FinTech – positioning Lagos as Africa’s innovation and digital finance hub;
- Commodities and Capital Markets – leveraging Nigeria’s depth in resources and growing financial markets; and
- Green and Sustainable Finance – aligning with global ESG trends and Africa’s transition priorities.
With Phase I approved by the LIFC Council, the project has now entered Phase II (May 2025 – March 2026) — the implementation and execution phase. This phase focuses on:
- Securing Federal Government approval for the LIFC through executive and legislative backing to ensure long-term sustainability.
- Establishing a Legal and Regulatory Sub-Working Group to support reforms, define governance and licensing structures, and align operations with global standards.
- Delivering capacity-building programmes for key public and private sector stakeholders, including residential FDI training at Cambridge and specialised modules on corporate governance and AI in finance.
- Strengthening strategy and financing, leveraging EnterpriseNGR’s membership of the World Alliance of International Financial Centres (WAIFC) and study visits to global IFCs such as DIFC, ADGM, and Casablanca.
- Advancing operational readiness through work on infrastructure, visas, and investment attraction measures.
As work accelerates, the focus remains clear: move decisively from design to delivery. Our collective motivation is to move swiftly with execution, with a clear focus on achieving a soft launch in 2026.