MTN Moves to Restore XtraTime as Telecoms Recalibrate After FCCPC Lending Rule Pause

By Francisca Anuforo

MTN Nigeria is preparing to restore its XtraTime airtime lending service following the suspension of enforcement of controversial digital lending regulations by Nigeria’s consumer protection regulator, in a move that highlights the growing regulatory overlap between telecom and financial services.

Industry sources confirmed that the country’s largest telecom operator has begun internal steps toward reinstating the service after the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) paused enforcement of its Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending (DEON) Regulations 2025.

“The FCCPC has suspended the enforcement of DEON. To that extent, we will reinstate the service,” a source familiar with the matter disclosed.

The planned restoration marks a notable shift in MTN’s earlier position.

During the company’s May earnings call, executives had maintained that the Federal High Court order restraining the FCCPC from enforcing the regulations did not automatically compel telecom operators to resume airtime lending services.

At the time, MTN argued that the court ruling neither invalidated the underlying regulations nor issued a direct instruction requiring operators to restore suspended products.

MTN declined to provide official comments on the development.

The company’s reconsideration follows the FCCPC’s May 22 decision to suspend enforcement of the regulations after an interim order issued by the Federal High Court in Lagos.

Justice A.L. Allagoa had restrained the commission from implementing the rules following a lawsuit filed by the Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria (WASPAN), which challenged the inclusion of telecom airtime credit under digital lending regulations.

The regulatory pause has already prompted competitors Airtel and Globacom to restore their airtime lending services.

For MTN, XtraTime occupies a strategic space beyond customer convenience.

The product allows subscribers to borrow airtime or data and repay through subsequent recharges, supporting telecom usage while also contributing to the company’s broader fintech and digital services ecosystem.

MTN executives previously disclosed that XtraTime-related fees contribute approximately three per cent of company revenue, while the consumption linked to the product accounts for a low-20 per cent share of airtime distribution.

Speaking during the earnings presentation, MTN Nigeria’s Chief Corporate Services and Sustainability Officer, Tobe Okigbo, had outlined the company’s earlier legal position.

“In terms of what needs to happen for us to resume airtime advance service, there are essentially two conditions,” Okigbo said.

“First, we would require either a court ruling that sets aside the regulations empowering the FCCPC to license, which has not happened, or a clear directive instructing us to reinstate the service.”

Despite the suspension, MTN insists the absence of XtraTime created only limited disruption to customer behaviour.

Chief Executive Officer Karl Toriola said subscribers adjusted quickly during the period when the service remained unavailable.

“There was a short-term impact on consumption patterns, which lasted only a few days,” Toriola told investors.

“However, as time progressed, customers adapted. They either shifted to self-funded usage or found alternative ways to manage short-term needs.”

The company maintains that XtraTime primarily affects payment flexibility rather than underlying demand for telecom services.

“As we have said, we expect consumption patterns and top-line revenue to normalise to levels consistent with what we would see without XtraTime. That is why we do not expect any material impact on full-year performance,” Toriola added.

MTN generated ₦5.2 trillion in revenue during the 2025 financial year and projects revenue of at least ₦6.24 trillion in 2026.

In its first-quarter 2026 earnings report, the telecom operator disclosed that it had continued onboarding approved service providers and expected to resume XtraTime once those processes were completed.

The regulatory dispute surrounding airtime lending reflects a broader debate over how digital services should be classified and supervised as telecom operators increasingly expand into fintech and embedded financial products.

The FCCPC regulations, introduced in 2025 to curb abusive practices among digital lenders, widened the definition of lending to include deferred-payment telecom services such as airtime and data advances.

Industry stakeholders, including WASPAN and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), argued that airtime credit operates as a telecom value-added service rather than a conventional loan product and should therefore remain under sector-specific regulation.

While the FCCPC has indicated plans to challenge the court order, MTN’s planned restoration of XtraTime signals that airtime lending remains commercially relevant and strategically important within Nigeria’s evolving telecom-fintech landscape.

The episode also underscores how regulatory uncertainty increasingly shapes competition, product strategy and digital financial inclusion across Nigeria’s communications sector.