P2Vest CEO Urges CBN To Regulate Online Loan Sharks Amid Privacy Intrusion

The Chief Executive Officer of P2Vest, an online loan platform, Austen Abolusoro, has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to draft guidelines for regulation of online lenders.

Online lending platforms have become the fastest alternative to banks for emergency borrowing.

Nigeria is leading the frontier of Sub-Saharan Africa in the fintech space and digital marketing but the sector is poorly regulated.

Online loan platforms in Nigeria are gaining popularity, but with the rush for the facility they provide, the operators have been accused of privacy invasion and abuse.

Some of the loan sharks are inflicting pains on borrowers due to poor regulation, experts have said.

“I think there is a need for some kind of regulation around that to help in fine-tuning everything. But this is a very important innovation in the economy and something that will help in empowering the economy,” Abolusoro said on Arise Tv.

He added, “We need innovation. There are a lot of complaints about this, but I can tell you that not every lender is doing this.

“We need the government or the regulators- the Central Bank, NITDA and all the rest of them to help bring up regulations to guide against this kind of intrusion into the privacy of borrowers, also to protect lenders.”

In August 2021, the Nigerian Information Technology Development Agency imposed a N10m fine on Soko Lending Company Limited, an online lending platform for privacy invasion.

“The agency’s investigation further revealed that the company embeds trackers that share data with third parties inside its mobile application without providing users information about it or using the appropriate lawful basis,” NITDA had said.

The CEO said lenders are risking their funds, adding that some borrowers do not borrow with the intention to service their loans.

The P2Vest CEO said, ” There is a lot of cry and concerns about the activities of some lenders in the way they go about the recovery of funds from defaulters.

“We have cases of people saying they have even posted pictures or images of borrowers that defaulted and then this is giving concern.”