Company registration in Nigeria in certain industries and economic sectors are govern by statues and other regulations in force that stipulate a minimum share capital threshold before a company can be successfully registered in Nigeria and commence business operation.
Having substantial share capital indicates that the company is viable, can raise additional funds if required, instill confidence in potential investors and lenders as many of these industries are highly regulated and require the investment of large sums of money.
The list below are various industries and their required minimum share capital before they can be successfully registered with Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Nigeria.
However, it should be noted that the minimum share capital threshold for company registration in Nigeria with foreign participation is N100 million Naira. A person seeking to set up a business in Nigeria may seek experienced corporate law experts' guide on how to successfully register a company in Nigeria.
| SN | TYPE OF COMPANY | MINIMUM SHARE CAPITAL (N) | JUSTIFICATION |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ISSUING HOUSE | 200 Million | Securities and Exchange Commission Guidelines on New Minimum Share Capital for Market Operators |
| 2 | BROKER/DEALER | 300Million | |
| 3 | TRUSTEE | 300 Million | |
| 4 | FUND/PORTFOLIO MANAGER | 150 Million | |
| 5 | STOCK BROKER | 200 Million | |
| 6 | STOCK DEALER | 100 Million | |
| 7 | CORPORATE INVESTMENT ADVISER (REGISTRAR) | 150 Million | |
| 8 | CORPORATE INVESTMENT ADVISER | 5 Million | |
| 9 | INDIVIDUAL INVESTMENT ADVISER | 2 Million | |
| 10 | MARKET MAKER | 2 Billion | |
| 11 | CONSULTANT (PARTNERSHIP) | 2 Million | |
| 12 | CONSULTANT (INDIVIDUAL) | 500,000 | |
| 13 | CONSULTANT (CORPORATE) | 5 Million | |
| 14 | UNDERWRITER | 200 Million | |
| 15 | VENTURE CAPITAL MANAGER | 20 Million | |
| 16 | COMMODITIES BROKER | 40 Million | |
| 17 | CAPITAL TRADE POINT | 20 Million | |
| 18 | RATING AGENCY | 150 Million | |
| 19 | CORPORATE/SUB BROKER | 5 Million | |
| 20 | ASSET MANAGEMENT (INTANGIBLE ASSETS) | 300 Million | |
| 21 | COMMERCIAL BANK WITH REGIONAL AUTHORIZATION | 10 Billion | CBN Scope and Standards Commercial Regulations 2020 |
| 22 | COMMERCIAL BANK WITH NATIONAL AUTHORIZATION | 25 Billion | |
| 23 | COMMERCIAL BANK WITH INTERNATIONAL AUTHORIZATION | 50 Billion | |
| 24 | MERCHANT BANK | 15 Billion | CBN Scope, Condition and Minimum Standard for Merchant Banks Regulation 2, 2010 |
| 25 | PAYMENT SOLUTION SERVICES (PSS) (As permissible under Super Agent, PTS and PSSP (combined)) | 250 Million | CBN Guidelines on licensing Framework/ Categorization for the Nigerian Payment System 2020 |
| 26 | SUPER AGENT (Agent Recruitment Management and other activities as specified in the Regulatory Framework for Licensing Super Agents in Nigeria | 50 Million | |
| 27 | PAYMENT TERMINAL SERVICE PROVIDER (PTSP) (POS Terminal Deployment and Services, POS Terminal Ownership, PTAD, Merchant/Agent Training and Support) | 100 Million | |
| 28 | PAYMENT SOLUTIONS SERVICE PROVIDER (PSSP) (Payment Processing Gateway and Portal, Payment Solution/Application Development, Merchant Service Aggregation and Collection) | 100 Million | |
| 29 | MOBILE MONEY OPERATION (E-Money Issuing, Wallet Creation and Management, Pool Account Management activities as permissible under Super Agent) | 2 Billion | |
| 30 | SWITCHING AND PROCESSING (Switching, Card Processing Transaction, Clearing and Settlement Agent Services, Non-bank Acquiring Services activities as permissible under Super Agent, PTSP and PSSP) | 2 Billion | |
| 31 | UNIT MICRO FINANCE BANK (TIER 1) | Tier 1: 200 Million | CBN Regulations |
| 32 | UNIT MICRO FINANCE BANK (TIER 2) | Tier 2: 50 Million | |
| 33 | MICRO FINANCE BANK (STATE & FCT) | 1 Billion | |
| 34 | MICRO FINANCE BANK (NATIONAL) | 5 Billion | |
| 35 | PRIMARY MORTGAGE INSTITUTION | 2 Billion | |
| 36 | FINANCE COMPANY | 20 Million | |
| 37 | BUREAU DE CHANGE | 35 Million | |
| 38 | NON-INTEREST BANK (REGIONAL) | 5 Billion | |
| 39 | NON INTEREST BANK (NATIONAL) | 10 Billion | |
| 40 | INSURANCE BROKER | 5 Million | Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers Act, 2003 |
| 41 | LIFE INSURANCE | 8 Billion | National Insurance Commission Revised Regulations 2019 |
| 42 | GENERAL INSURANCE | 10 Billion | |
| 43 | COMPOSITE INSURANCE | 18 Billion | |
| 42 | GENERAL INSURANCE | 10 Billion | |
| 43 | COMPOSITE INSURANCE | 18 Billion | |
| 44 | RE-INSURANCE | 20 Billion | |
| 45 | UNIT MICROINSURER | 40 Million | Guidelines for Micro-insurance Operation in Nigeria 2018 |
| 46 | STATE MICROINSURER | 100 Million | Guidelines for Microinsurance Operation in Nigeria 2018 |
| 47 | NATIONAL MICROINSURER | 600 Million | Guidelines for Microinsurance Operation in Nigeria 2018 |
| 48 | TAKAFUL INSURANCE (GENERAL AND FAMILY TAKAFUL) | 200 Million | National Insurance Commission Regulations |
| 49 | PRIVATE SECURITY COMPANY/CONSULTANT | 10 Million | Guideline on Requirements for Registration of Private Guard Security Companies made Pursuant to Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp Act No. 2 of 2003 |
| 50 | PENSION FUND/ASSET CUSTODIAN | 2 Billion | National Pensions Commission Requirements for Licensing of Pension Fund Custodians (FEB 2005); National Pensions Commission Revised Minimum Share Capital Requirement for Licensed Pension Fund Administrators (April 2021); |
| 51 | CLOSED PENSION FUND | 500 Million | |
| 52 | PENSION FUND ADMINISTRATOR | 5 Billion | |
| 53 | LOTTERY | 5 Million | Section 2 (1), National Lotteries (Amendment) Regulation, 2007 |
| 54 | SPORTS LOTTERY | 30 Million | National Lottery Commission Circular |
| 55 | AIR TRANSPORT (INTERNATIONAL) | 2 Billion | Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority |
| 56 | AIR TRANSPORT (REGIONAL) | 1 Billion | |
| 57 | AIR TRANSPORT (LOCAL) | 500 Million | |
| 58 | AIR AMBULANCE/FUMIGATION/ PRIVATE JET | 20 Million | |
| 59 | AVIATION (GROUND HANDLING SERVICES) | 500 Million | |
| 60 | AVIATION (AIR TRANSPORT TRAINING INSTITUTIONS) | 2 Million | |
| 61 | AGENTS OF FOREIGN AIRLINES | 1 Million | |
| 62 | TRAVEL/TOURS | 30 Million | International Air Travel Agency (IATA) |
| 63 | AGRICULTURAL SEEDS, PRODUCTIONS, PROCESSING, MARKETING | 10 Million | NASA Cap 5, LFN, 2004 |
| 64 | SHIPPING COMPANY/AGENT | 25 Million | NIMASA Guidelines for Registration |
| 65 | CABOTAGE TRADE | 25 Million | |
| 66 | LIFE MICRO-INSURANCE | 150 Million | Guideline for Micro-Finance Operations in Nigeria (NAICOM), December, 2013 |
| 67 | GENERAL MICRO-INSURANCE | 200 Million | Guideline for Micro-Finance Operations in Nigeria (NAICOM), December, 2013 |
| 68 | FREIGTH FORWARDING | 5 Million | Registration of Freight Forwarding Regulation 2010 |
| 69 | PAYMENT SERVICE BANK | 5 Billion | |
| 70 | HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION (HMO)(NATIONAL) | 400 Million (Paid up) | National Health Insurance Scheme HMO Accreditation Guidelines |
| 71 | HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION (HMO)(REGIONAL) | 200 Million(Paid up) | |
| 72 | HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION (HMO)(STATE) | 100 Million (Paid up) |
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
