Indigenous AI-powered compliance platform offers Nigerian financial institutions a ready-made path to meeting the CBN’s 18-month AML automation deadline
Smartcomply, a leading international compliance and cybersecurity technology company with deep roots across Africa, today confirmed that its Adhere platform, an AI-powered AML compliance and fraud detection solution, is already aligned with the Baseline Standards for Automated Anti-Money Laundering Solutions issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria on March 10, 2026.
The CBN circular (BSD/DIR/PUB/LAB/019/002) requires all banks, mobile money operators, international money transfer operators, and other financial institutions under CBN regulation to deploy automated AML solutions meeting 12 categories of minimum standards within 18 to 24 months. Implementation roadmaps must be submitted within three months.
“Adhere was built to solve exactly the challenge the CBN is now mandating every financial institution to address. Our platform covers transaction monitoring, automated KYC and CDD, sanctions and PEP screening, risk assessment, case management, and regulatory reporting, all purpose-built for the African regulatory environment and integrated with national identity infrastructure including BVN and NIN.” — Gbemisola Osunrinde, CEO, Smartcomply
Key areas where Adhere meets the CBN’s baseline standards include:
- AI-powered transaction monitoring with behavioural pattern recognition, anomaly detection, and explainable alert generation
- End-to-end automated KYC, CDD, and KYB processes integrated with BVN and NIN databases
- Real-time sanctions, watchlist, and PEP screening with fuzzy matching and adverse media monitoring
- Dynamic, risk-based customer profiling that adjusts in response to new data and behavioural changes
- Enterprise case management with role-based workflows, maker-checker controls, and complete audit trails
- Automated regulatory reporting in CBN-prescribed formats, including STRs, SARs, CTRs, and FTRs
- Fraud detection and monitoring across multiple channels with real-time alerting
- Full data protection controls aligned with the Nigeria Data Protection Act
- Customisable workflows, alert thresholds, and risk scenarios configurable to each institution’s specific requirements
Adhere is already operational with banking clients across multiple African markets, giving institutions the confidence of a platform that has been tested in live regulatory environments rather than a theoretical solution.
“Compliance teams across Nigeria are right now evaluating how to meet these new requirements. The institutions that will move fastest are the ones that choose a platform purpose-built for African regulatory standards, one that can be customised to their specific risk profiles and operational workflows, rather than trying to retrofit a system that was designed for a different market.” — Gbemisola Osunrinde, CEO, Smartcomply
About Smartcomply
Smartcomply is an international compliance and cybersecurity technology company with strong operations across Africa, serving financial institutions, healthcare organisations, telecommunications providers, and other regulated industries across the continent and beyond. Through its product suite, including Adhere (AML compliance and fraud detection), Seequre (GRC and cybersecurity compliance), Oculus (threat intelligence), and Smartcomply Academy (compliance education), the company serves over 100 businesses. Smartcomply is a pioneer in building purpose-built compliance technology for African and emerging markets.
