Onafriq, a payments company, has announced plans to wind down the agent banking business that Baxi runs under Onafriq Nigeria Payments Limited. In a statement, the company said the decision does not mean it is leaving Nigeria. It will continue to run its cross-border payments network and card issuing services in the country. The move ends Onafriq’s involvement in offline agent banking, a segment that has extended access to financial transactions beyond traditional bank branches.
Currency pressures and instant transfers reshape agent economics
Onafriq said changes in the operating environment since 2024 had significantly altered the economics of its offline agent banking business, making it unsustainable under the existing model. The company pointed to naira depreciation and inflation, which affected transaction volumes, operating expenses, and the overall viability of the model. It also cited the rapid growth of instant account-to-account (A2A) transfers, which has changed the mix of transactions handled by agents. Rising competition in the segment has also compressed margins.
Onafriq entered Nigeria’s agent banking market in 2021 by acquiring Baxi, also known as Capricorn Digital Limited, and kept investing in the agent network through 2023. After reviewing its long-term strategy and the business's sustainability, the group concluded that winding it down was the right course. Dare Okoudjou, founder and CEO of Onafriq, acknowledged that the business had not achieved its intended outcome but said Nigeria remains central to the group’s mission.
Transition for agents and wider market pullbacks
Agents onboarded through the Baxi platform have already been moved to another principal bank. Onafriq has asked them to transfer their funds to a principal bank of their choice within 30 days, and company teams will help during the transition. Staff whose roles are tied to the agent banking business will be consulted and supported, and the company has committed to treating affected employees fairly.
The wind-down comes as agent banking in Nigeria operates under a stricter regulatory framework. On 6 October 2025, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued new guidelines to regulate agent banking operations, replacing the earlier frameworks from 2013 and 2015. Under the rules, super agents are now prohibited from offering agent banking services directly, and all agent banking transactions must run through a dedicated account or wallet held with the principal financial institution. Agent banking devices must also be geo-fenced, limiting their operations to registered locations. Since 1 April 2026, agents have been restricted to working with a single principal, and the rule also applies to super agent networks. The framework also sets daily and weekly withdrawal limits for customers and a daily cash-out cap for each agent. Onafriq did not cite the guidelines among its reasons, but the move of Baxi agents to a new principal bank takes place within this framework.
