The Federal High Court in Lagos has ruled that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has no authority to issue telecommunications licences, affirming that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) remains the sole regulator empowered to license operators in the sector.
Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa delivered the judgment on Monday in Suit No. FHC/L/CS/760/2026, holding that while the DEON Consumer Lending Regulations 2025 fall within the statutory and constitutional powers of the FCCPC, the commission’s role is limited to overseeing airtime and data credit services alongside the NCC.
The judge emphasised that the relationship between the FCCPC and sector-specific regulators is one of complementarity rather than substitution.
“Concurrency means coexistence, not displacement,” the court held.
The court affirmed the FCCPC’s powers in matters relating to competition and consumer protection under Sections 104 and 105 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018, while preserving the NCC’s technical, licensing and prudential responsibilities under the Nigerian Communications Act 2003.
Justice Lewis-Allagoa ruled that the FCCPC does not have the statutory authority to issue telecommunications licences and that the DEON Consumer Lending Regulations 2025 do not establish a telecommunications licensing framework.
In April 2026, the FCCPC approved five companies to operate as airtime and data credit providers under the DEON framework. The judgment has now raised questions about the regulatory basis on which those approvals were granted.
The ruling is the first judicial clarification on the oversight of airtime and data credit services between the FCCPC and the NCC in a market valued at between ₦300 billion and ₦400 billion annually, with about 40 million Nigerians relying on the services daily.
Reacting to the judgment, the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Gbenga Adebayo, welcomed the court’s clarification of the roles of both regulators.
“The court has done something important. It has confirmed the FCCPC’s authority and, in the same breath, affirmed that the NCC’s role is preserved. Concurrency means coexistence. The industry now expects both regulators to establish the coordination framework that the court’s reasoning requires,” he said.
Adebayo urged the FCCPC and the NCC to engage industry stakeholders in formal consultations before taking enforcement actions, recalling that airtime credit services were suspended for three months earlier this year before being restored.
“Forty million Nigerians depend on these services. The court has made clear that both regulators have a role. The industry is asking them to define how that works before any action that could disrupt access again,” he added.
He also noted that the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) directive of April 6, 2026, requiring federal agencies to conduct a Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) before introducing major regulatory changes, remains in force.
The judgment is expected to serve as a landmark precedent in defining how the FCCPC and sector-specific regulators will share oversight as digital financial and telecommunications services continue to evolve across traditional regulatory boundaries.
