By Taibat Ummi Yakubu

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has called for the harmonisation and centralisation of beneficial ownership information across government institutions as part of efforts to expose individuals hiding behind corporate structures and tackle illicit financial flows in Nigeria.

Registrar-General and Chief Executive of the CAC, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, made the call in Abuja while speaking at the opening of a training workshop on the Beneficial Ownership Register organised for journalists and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).

Magaji said Nigeria could strengthen its fight against corruption, money laundering, terrorism financing and other financial crimes by moving away from fragmented ownership databases maintained separately by different government agencies.

He argued that the existence of multiple databases could make it difficult for regulators, investigators and other authorised users to establish who ultimately owns, controls or benefits from a company.

According to him, Nigeria needs to move beyond what he described as separate “islands” of beneficial ownership information and develop an interconnected national transparency system through which relevant information can be linked across sectors.

The CAC currently maintains the country’s corporate beneficial ownership register, while information relating to entities operating within Free Trade Zones is maintained under the framework of the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA). Similar ownership information relating to companies in the extractive sector is also maintained through the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

Magaji acknowledged that the separate arrangements have legal foundations but noted that the fundamental information being sought remains largely similar: identifying who owns a company, who controls it, who benefits from it and, ultimately, the natural person behind the corporate structure.

“Do we continue to operate separate islands of beneficial ownership information, or do we move towards a harmonised and centralised national architecture?” he asked.

The CAC chief said the commission’s corporate registry should serve as the central backbone for corporate information, while emphasising that the proposal would not undermine the statutory responsibilities of NEPZA, NEITI or other government institutions.

Rather, he said, the objective would be to establish common standards that allow relevant information held by different agencies to be connected and accessed by authorised users.

“Transparency works best when information can be connected,” Magaji said.

He explained that businesses can operate across multiple sectors and regulatory jurisdictions, making it important for ownership information to remain traceable regardless of where a company conducts its activities.

A more integrated system, he added, could reduce duplication, improve the quality of corporate records and give investigators a clearer picture of complex ownership structures.

Unmasking the People Behind Companies

Magaji also explained the importance of beneficial ownership disclosure, noting that Nigeria’s corporate regulatory framework uses the concept of a Person with Significant Control (PSC) to identify individuals who ultimately exercise substantial ownership, control or influence over companies.

Under the Persons with Significant Control Rules 2022, the disclosure system is intended to go beyond the names of directors and shareholders appearing in conventional corporate records.

The CAC boss explained that the people listed in a company’s immediate records may not necessarily be the individuals who ultimately control or benefit from the entity.

He described beneficial ownership disclosure as an effort to “lift the veil” surrounding complicated corporate structures and identify the actual individuals behind them.

He stressed that the register should not be regarded simply as another regulatory obligation for businesses but as a tool for strengthening corporate accountability, transparency and the fight against financial crimes.

CAC Urges Journalists to Dig Deeper

Magaji also challenged journalists to make greater use of beneficial ownership information when investigating companies, government contracts, procurement deals, financial transactions and business relationships.

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He said journalists could use the register to establish connections that may not be obvious from conventional corporate records, particularly when investigating companies linked to public contracts or transactions involving significant resources.

According to him, anti-corruption and law-enforcement agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), have used beneficial ownership information in their investigative activities.

He encouraged journalists and civil society organisations to access the information, analyse it, cross-check it with other records and use verified findings to strengthen public accountability.

At the same time, Magaji warned against automatically treating the appearance of an individual's name in a company record as evidence of criminal activity.

He urged journalists to establish the facts and provide context before publishing reports based on beneficial ownership information.

“Use the information. Question the information. Verify the information. Tell the story,” he told the participants.

Transparency, Not a Threat to Legitimate Businesses

The CAC registrar-general maintained that stronger corporate transparency should not be seen as an obstacle to legitimate businesses.

He said a credible beneficial ownership system could help protect genuine entrepreneurs from being wrongly associated with fraudulent companies, strengthen investor confidence and assist law-enforcement agencies in tracing assets and financial transactions.

Greater transparency, he added, could also make it more difficult for companies to be used as vehicles for corruption, money laundering, terrorism financing and other illicit activities.

Magaji said the CAC was committed to transforming the beneficial ownership register from a database maintained mainly for regulatory compliance into a practical tool for corporate governance, transparency and anti-corruption efforts.

He disclosed that access to the commission's beneficial ownership information is free, encouraging journalists and CSOs to familiarise themselves with the platform and use the available data responsibly.

Nigeria Seeks to Strengthen Its Transparency System

Magaji also highlighted Nigeria's experience in developing its beneficial ownership framework, saying the country had progressed from learning from other jurisdictions to sharing its own experience with countries seeking to develop similar systems.

He said Nigeria's approach had attracted international interest through peer reviews, knowledge exchanges and other engagements on the practical implementation of beneficial ownership transparency.

However, he said the country must continue improving the system, particularly by strengthening harmonisation and interoperability among institutions.

The next phase, according to him, should focus on ensuring that information held by different government bodies can be connected while respecting legitimate privacy and data-protection requirements.

He added that the CAC's ongoing digital transformation was aimed at improving access to corporate information, strengthening the integrity of its registers and making the commission's services more transparent and efficient.