NCC EVC Aminu Maida to Headline Business Journal Fintech Roundtable 2026
Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice-Chairman and CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission, has been confirmed as special guest of honour at the 3rd Business Journal Fintech & Financial Inclusion Roundtable 2026, set to hold on Friday, July 31, at the Oriental Hotel, Lekki Road, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The event carries the theme “Fintech: Driving the Future of Digital Financial Ecosystem in Nigeria,” and brings together regulators, fintech operators and industry stakeholders to weigh in on the sector’s growing role in the country’s economy.
Maida’s invitation comes against the backdrop of a tenure that has reshaped Nigeria’s telecom regulatory space. He was appointed to lead the NCC by President Bola Tinubu in October 2024, arriving with a strong technical pedigree: an MEng in Information Systems Engineering from Imperial College London, a PhD in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Bath, and a postgraduate diploma in Fintech entrepreneurship from Cambridge Judge Business School.
Before taking the helm at NCC, Maida served as Executive Director, Technology and Operations at the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), where he led efforts to standardise devices across Nigeria’s financial system for interoperability, ensuring banking terminals nationwide could process cards from any licensed scheme without restriction. His earlier roles span CTO at fintech firm Arca Payments Network, senior manager at Cisco Systems UK, network design consultant at EE (part of BT Group), and systems engineer at Ubiquisys.
Speaking on the announcement, Business Journal Media Group’s Publisher/Editor-in-Chief, Prince Cookey, said Maida’s arrival at the NCC came at a pivotal moment for Nigeria’s digital economy and telecom regulation, crediting him with elevating the Commission’s profile across Africa and beyond. Cookey added that stakeholders at the roundtable can expect a frank conversation on the state of fintech, digital growth, and financial inclusion numbers, both current and projected.
Joining Maida as special guest of honour will be Olusegun Omosehin, Commissioner for Insurance and CEO of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM). The roundtable will be chaired by Alhaji (Dr.) Umaru Kwairanga, Group Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), while Emmanuel Ovaga, Managing Director/CEO of PufferPay Limited, delivers the keynote address.
The panel lineup includes Dr. Muda Yusuf of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Mrs. Idu Okeahialam of Royal Exchange Plc, Mr. Jide Orimolade of Stanbic IBTC Insurance, Dr. Obioha Oti of the Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria, and Mr. Sarafadeen Fasasi of the Association of Financial Inclusion Agents of Nigeria.
The roundtable arrives at a defining moment for Nigerian fintech. Companies like Moniepoint, Opay, PalmPay and Flutterwave have driven a sharp expansion in digital payment access nationwide, with fintechs accounting for a major share of the country’s tech investment in recent years. In January 2026, the Central Bank of Nigeria granted national operating licences to Moniepoint and Opay, allowing them to function across all 36 states, a move widely seen as recognition of the sector’s role in deepening financial inclusion.
Organisers say the roundtable aims to spotlight the contribution fintechs are making to Nigeria’s economic growth, with regulators, operators, media and the public expected to attend.
