The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has identified about 40 million Nigerians living with disabilities as an underserved segment of the financial system, and a potential market for fintech companies.
Governor Olayemi Cardoso, represented by Abiodun Olalekan Okunola, Head of the Innovation Management Division, spoke at Nigeria Fintech Week 2026 in Lagos.
He said the financial system has not done enough to develop technology and services for persons with disabilities, and urged fintechs to begin building solutions for the group.
Cardoso said the CBN’s work with the National Agency for Persons with Disabilities had exposed gaps in the system’s ability to serve people with disabilities.
“Many people may not know that there are about 40 million Nigerians that are persons living with disability. Our financial system, we have not innovated to take care of them,” he said.
Cardoso said the problem goes beyond technology to how bank staff treat customers with disabilities. He cited visually impaired customers who have money in their accounts but are often treated poorly at the bank.
“Blind people have money in their accounts. They go to the bank. When they get to the bank teller, the first thing they see is somebody coming to beg, even if that person has N20 million in their account, they do not treat them well,” he said.
He added that financial institutions will need to train their staff to respond appropriately to customers with disabilities.
The governor also pointed to the limits of fingerprint-based identification, noting that people affected by leprosy may no longer have fingerprints. He said the industry would need alternative forms of identification for such customers.
“They don’t have fingerprints. So what that means is that we also must innovate so that perhaps we start using their, you know, irises or something to do identity,” he said.
Cardoso said millions of Nigerians remain excluded because financial technology has not been designed around their needs, and he framed this as a business opportunity as well as an inclusion issue.
“So 40 million people excluded, not having targeted technological solutions to meet their needs. I’m sure you’re thinking already, there’s a lot of money to be made there,” he said.
He described exclusion as the third “brake” to be lifted, after fragmentation and the deficit of trust.
The comments come as regulators and financial institutions continue efforts to extend services to underserved groups. In September 2025, FirstBank announced it was developing tailored services for blind, partially sighted and physically challenged customers.
In June 2026, the CBN said its Payment System Vision 2028 targets financial inclusion for 95% of Nigerian adults by 2028, which could bring about 50 million more people into the formal financial system.
