The Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) has entered into a partnership with fintech giant Moniepoint to expand access to finance for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), in what business leaders see as a potential catalyst for growth and job creation in Africa’s largest economy.
The collaboration was unveiled at the chamber’s SME-focused forum in Lagos, where speakers highlighted the need for stronger credit penetration and greater capacity building for smaller businesses struggling in a difficult operating environment.
The NBCC president said the initiative marks a shift from the chamber’s traditional role of facilitating Nigeria–UK trade to a broader mission of strengthening local enterprise through innovation, knowledge, and access to resources. He emphasised that supporting SMEs is central to building resilience and ensuring sustainable economic growth.
Nigeria’s MSME sector, which accounts for more than 39 million businesses and nearly 80 per cent of the country’s workforce, is widely recognised as the backbone of the economy. Yet many of these businesses remain underfunded, with lack of affordable credit consistently ranking as their biggest obstacle.
Moniepoint has already made significant inroads into this space through its digital platforms. The company disclosed that in the past two years it has disbursed over N2 trillion in working capital overdrafts and inventory financing to more than 68,000 MSMEs, while powering close to two million businesses nationwide with services that range from payments and loans to digital inventory management.
Company executives described the impact of finance as transformational when combined with the right digital tools, arguing that moving capital efficiently reduces informality and boosts productivity in the SME space. They also noted that innovation in the private sector could complement government monetary policies by lowering transaction costs and broadening access to credit.
Neither the NBCC nor Moniepoint disclosed financial commitments under the new arrangement, but both framed the partnership as a long-term platform to support financing, business education, and digital capacity building.
The rollout is expected to target key sectors such as retail, agribusiness, and light manufacturing, with follow-up engagements planned for SME clusters later in the year.
Business leaders said the move comes at a crucial time, as rising inflation, high borrowing costs, weak infrastructure, and currency volatility continue to squeeze small businesses. They stressed that strategic partnerships of this nature are essential to ensuring that SMEs—despite mounting pressures are not excluded from the pursuit of national and regional prosperity.
