Telecommunications users across Nigeria can once again access emergency airtime borrowing services after major network providers, Airtel and Globacom, quietly restored the platforms.
The services returned following the suspension of the controversial Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending (DEON) Regulations 2025 by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
The decision comes amid increasing legal pressure on the commission after a Federal High Court in Lagos ordered a temporary halt to the enforcement of the regulations while a lawsuit challenging the FCCPC’s authority over telecom-based airtime lending remains ongoing.
Confirming the restoration, Chairman of the Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria (WASPAN), Ayo Stuffman, stated that the services had resumed on both networks.
“As we speak, the services in question are already active on Airtel and Glo,” he said.
The return of the emergency airtime services is expected to provide relief for millions of Nigerians who rely on airtime borrowing for communication and small business activities. Industry estimates reportedly place the annual airtime lending market at over ₦400 billion.
The FCCPC had earlier attempted to regulate airtime lending services under the DEON Regulations 2025, arguing that the platforms qualify as digital consumer credit services and should therefore fall under consumer lending oversight.
The commission also claimed it received over 11,000 complaints related to digital lending activities, including concerns about data privacy and unfair lending practices.
However, telecom stakeholders, including WASPAN and other operators, opposed the move, insisting that airtime advances are telecom value-added services rather than conventional loans.
The legal battle intensified after Justice A. Allagoa of the Federal High Court in Lagos restrained the FCCPC from enforcing the regulations, while contempt proceedings were reportedly initiated against the commission’s Executive Vice Chairman, Tunji Bello.
In a statement released on Friday, FCCPC Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, confirmed that the commission suspended the enforcement of the regulations in compliance with the court order.
“As a law-abiding institution, the Commission, in deference and in obedience to the rule of law, hereby suspends the implementation and the enforcement of the DEON Regulations 2025,” the statement read.
Despite the suspension, the FCCPC indicated plans to challenge the ruling, revealing that its legal team had been directed to contest both the court order and the lawsuit filed against the commission.
Industry stakeholders say the development has temporarily eased tensions within the telecom sector, though concerns remain about the long-term regulatory uncertainty surrounding Nigeria’s rapidly growing digital credit industry.
Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Gbenga Adebayo, had earlier called for clearer regulations and greater predictability within the telecommunications sector.
For now, subscribers can once again access emergency airtime borrowing services, while attention shifts to the outcome of the ongoing court battle, which could shape the future regulation of Nigeria’s digital lending ecosystem.