The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has unveiled a new Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven registration portal designed to revolutionize the way businesses are registered in the country.
The announcement was made by the Registrar-General/CEO of CAC, Hussaini Magaji, during the Commission’s 2025 Stakeholders Forum held in Port Harcourt.
According to Magaji, the initiative marks a complete overhaul of the Commission’s existing Company Registration Portal (CRP) and is part of the agency’s broader digital transformation strategy.
“The name reservation process is now as simple as opening an email account. With AI integration, approvals and suggestions are processed in real-time,” Magaji stated.
The AI-driven portal allows prospective business owners to begin registration using only the National Identification Number (NIN) of a director or proprietor. Upon successful NIN verification, the system is designed to:
- Generate the business certificate
- Deliver it directly to the applicant’s email
- All in under 30 minutes
This marks a significant improvement from previous delays that could stretch into several days.
The system also offers instant name approvals, intelligently suggesting alternative names when a user’s preferred option is unavailable. It uses AI-powered photo ID matching to verify identities, further reducing manual errors and bureaucratic bottlenecks.
For the over 42 million MSMEs in Nigeria, many of whom operate informally, this breakthrough significantly lowers the barrier to formalization. The new platform:
- Eliminates paperwork and long queues
- Cuts down the time and cost of business registration
- Encourages young entrepreneurs and digital startups to register and scale faster
The CAC’s modernization drive is expected to further improve Nigeria’s Ease of Doing Business ranking and foster a more inclusive business environment.
“This is a game changer for doing business in Nigeria. We’re building a system that delivers faster, smarter, and more reliable services,” Magaji emphasized.
The AI portal is a cornerstone of CAC’s broader reforms aimed at digitalizing corporate services and attracting local and foreign investment through transparency and efficiency.
The Commission is also working on integrating compliance monitoring, tax identity linkage (via NIN), and post-incorporation services into the platform, setting a new benchmark for business regulatory agencies in Africa.
The launch of CAC’s AI-driven registration portal represents a major leap forward in Nigeria’s digital governance. It simplifies formal business setup for MSMEs and startups, offering a clear path to legality, structure, and growth.
As Nigeria positions itself as a hub for innovation and enterprise, this development puts the CAC at the heart of economic empowerment, and entrepreneurs should seize the opportunity to get formal, fast.
