Federal Government's Galaxy Backbone Courts Financial Institutions Following Central Bank's Order to Keep Data in Nigeria

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The Federal Government-owned Galaxy Backbone has intensified efforts to attract banks, fintechs and other financial institutions to its digital infrastructure services.

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This followed the recent directive by the Central Bank of Nigeria requiring payment transaction data generated within the country to be stored on local servers.

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The move was disclosed in a statement issued by Galaxy Backbone on Monday after the organisation hosted chief information officers from banks, fintech firms and other technology stakeholders at its second-quarter webinar on digital trust, regulatory compliance and infrastructure resilience.

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The statement said the webinar, themed “Building Digital Trust in Nigeria’s Financial Sector: Navigating Regulatory Compliance and Infrastructure Performance,” focused on the growing need for secure digital infrastructure as financial institutions adjust to evolving regulatory requirements and increasing digital adoption.

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According to the statement, the event came as the CBN directed banks, fintech companies, mobile money operators and other payment service providers to store payment transaction data generated within Nigeria on local servers.

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“The policy is intended to strengthen regulatory oversight, improve transparency, reduce concentration risks and ensure that critical payment data remains within the country’s jurisdiction,” the statement read.

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Opening the webinar, Galaxy Backbone’s Executive Director, Finance, Ibrahim Sani, said the rapid transformation of Nigeria’s financial sector had reinforced the need for trusted digital infrastructure capable of supporting secure, reliable and future-ready financial services.

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The statement read, “He noted that Galaxy Backbone continues to provide the digital backbone that supports both public and private sector institutions, including several financial institutions that already rely on its secure connectivity, cloud and data centre services.”

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Sani added that the organisation remained well positioned to support the industry’s compliance journey by providing resilient infrastructure that meets evolving regulatory and business requirements.

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The statement also quoted the Executive Director, Digital Exploration and Technical Services, Olumbe Akinkugbe, as saying that compliance with CBN directives and other regulatory frameworks was essential to strengthening transparency, accountability, consumer confidence and the security of financial data in Nigeria’s increasingly digital economy.

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It added that Galaxy Backbone’s Head of Automation and Integration, Thomas Oghenebhumhe, demonstrated the organisation’s sovereign cloud capabilities during the webinar, explaining how resilient cloud infrastructure enables financial institutions to innovate faster, improve operational efficiency, protect sensitive information and maintain compliance with regulatory standards.

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According to the statement, the presentation generated discussions among participants on cloud migration, data sovereignty and regulatory compliance.

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The Head of Data Centre Operations, Samuel Olusola Oyeleke, also highlighted Galaxy Backbone’s globally certified Tier III and Tier IV data centre infrastructure, noting that the facilities provide resilience, high availability and reliability to support uninterrupted digital services, disaster recovery and business continuity for mission-critical financial operations.

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Speaking at the close of the webinar, the Executive Director, Customer Centricity and Marketing, Olusegun Olulade, stressed the need for collaboration among regulators, technology providers and financial institutions to strengthen digital trust.

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“He noted that as Nigeria’s financial ecosystem becomes increasingly digital, organisations must invest in infrastructure that not only meets regulatory requirements but also guarantees resilience, security, business continuity and customer confidence,” the statement read.

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Olulade reaffirmed Galaxy Backbone’s commitment to supporting the financial services industry with “secure, resilient and globally aligned digital infrastructure that enables institutions to innovate with confidence while maintaining compliance with evolving regulatory standards.”

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The statement added that the organisation’s Uptime-certified data centres, Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard certification, sovereign cloud platform and nationwide fibre infrastructure provide banks, fintechs and payment service providers with platforms for secure data hosting, payment security, regulatory compliance, business continuity and disaster recovery.

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It stated that the infrastructure also supports the growing need for data sovereignty by ensuring that critical financial data is securely hosted within Nigeria in line with regulatory expectations.

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The PUNCH earlier reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria directed banks, fintech firms and other payment service providers to store payment transaction data generated within the country on local servers from January 1, 2027, as part of new measures to strengthen oversight of the fast-growing digital payments ecosystem.

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The directive was contained in a circular issued by the Payments System Supervision Department of the CBN and addressed to deposit money banks, microfinance banks, mobile money operators, switching and processing companies, payment terminal service providers, payment solution service providers, super agents and other licensed operators in the payments industry.

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The circular, signed by the Director of the Payments System Supervision Department, Rakiya Yusuf, also introduced new market structure rules, beneficial ownership disclosure requirements and systemic oversight measures for payment service operators.

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