Nigeria has been removed from the European Union’s list of high-risk jurisdictions, a move expected to facilitate trade, payments, and investment flows between the country and Europe, according to Business Insider.
The European Commission confirmed on Wednesday that Nigeria, along with South Africa, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mozambique, and Tanzania, had strengthened its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) frameworks and no longer posed “strategic deficiencies” under EU assessment standards.
The Commission noted that the affected countries had implemented reforms aligning their financial systems with international standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Reacting to the development, the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, described Nigeria’s removal from the list as a major boost to investor confidence. In a post on X on Thursday, she wrote:
“Big win for Nigeria! Removed from EU’s financial ‘high-risk’ list! Congrats to President @officialABAT on this achievement. As Minister of State for Finance, I’m proud of this boost to trade and investor confidence.”
Previously, being on the EU’s high-risk list meant that transactions with European partners required enhanced due diligence, stricter documentation, and additional oversight. Nigerian businesses and banks faced increased scrutiny, slowing cross-border trade and complicating investment flows.
