Telecommunications subscribers across Nigeria have regained access to emergency airtime lending services after Airtel and Glo restored the platforms.
The development followed the suspension of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (FCCPC) controversial Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations 2025.
The restoration also came amid legal pressure on the commission after a Federal High Court in Lagos ordered a halt to the enforcement of the regulations pending the determination of a suit challenging its powers over telecom-based airtime advances.
Confirming the development on Monday, the Chairman of the Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria (WASPAN), Ayo Stuffman, said the platforms had resumed operations on the two networks.
“As we speak, the services in question are already active on Airtel and Glo,” he said.
The return of the services is expected to bring relief to millions of subscribers who rely on emergency airtime credit for communication and small-scale business operations.
Industry estimates put the annual airtime lending market at over ₦400 billion.
The FCCPC had earlier moved to regulate airtime lending platforms under the DEON Regulations 2025.
The commission argued that such services amounted to digital consumer credit and required oversight to protect users from alleged abuses, including data privacy violations and unfair lending practices.
It also said it had received more than 11,000 consumer complaints linked to digital lending operations.
However, stakeholders in the telecommunications sector, including WASPAN, opposed the move.
They argued that airtime advances were telecom value-added services and not conventional consumer loans.
Court Restrains Commission
The dispute escalated after Justice A. Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Lagos, restrained the FCCPC from enforcing the framework.
Form 49 contempt proceedings were also reportedly initiated against the commission’s Executive Vice Chairman, Tunji Bello.
In a statement on Friday, FCCPC Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, said the commission suspended implementation of the regulations in obedience to 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 said it would challenge the ruling.
The commission said its legal team had been directed to contest both the court order and the competence of the suit filed against it.
