High fees and lack of pricing transparency may be a barrier to accessing financial services, especially for low-income and rural populations. In Nigeria, where access to financial services is lower than in neighboring countries, the Central Bank issued regulations to limit customer fees. However, anecdotal evidence suggests these regulations are not always followed. Researchers conducted a transaction audit to determine whether digital financial service (DFS) providers comply with pricing regulations. The results demonstrate that phone-based financial transactions often fail, it is difficult and costly to find accurate pricing information, and consumers sometimes pay fees that exceed caps set by the Central Bank. These results have wider implications for consumer welfare, inclusion, and trust in financial services.

The opening of Nigeria’s mobile money system to non-banks and new mobile banking products from commercial banks presents the potential for digital finance to take off in the country. To maximize the benefits of digital inclusion, expansion of use should occur alongside sufficient consumer protection policies and responsible product design. Yet existing surveys on financial access have provided only limited insights on consumer protection issues and have not probed on the drivers of issues such as fraud and loss of trust in digital products. This study provides initial evidence on the experiences and consumer protection risks in mobile and agent-based financial services to inform market development. To do so, researchers conducted a survey of digital finance users in Lagos, Kaduna, and Enugu. The survey covered active and dormant users of electronic payments products, mobile banking products, agent banking, and digital credit on key consumer protection topics including pricing transparency, fraud, experiences at agent locations, complaints handling, and redress.

Globally, irregular migration and human trafficking have reached crisis proportions in fragile and conflict-affected states. In Nigeria, the combination of ongoing, low-intensity conflict, a large youth population, and limited economic opportunities has led to high levels of irregular migrants seeking to make the dangerous journey to Europe. There is little evidence on how individuals weigh the risks and benefits of migration, and how information campaigns influence decisions to migrate. To fill this gap, researchers are partnering with Innovations for Poverty Action and the UK Cabinet office to evaluate the impact of providing information about the risks and outcomes of irregular migration through door-to-door campaigns and social networks on actual migration decisions.