On 20 October 2026, Nigeria’s Central Bank governor, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, travelled to Beijing to head a high‑level roundtable aimed at deepening the financial corridor between Nigeria and China. The event, themed “Strengthening the Nigeria‑China Financial Corridor,” was held at the Pan‑Pacific Beijing and brought together business, financial and industry leaders active in the Nigeria‑China trade network.
The roundtable focused on easing cross‑border payment barriers, streamlining settlement arrangements and expanding Nigerian banking presence in China. Cardoso urged Chinese investors to increase exposure to Nigerian financial markets, including naira‑denominated instruments, and called for tighter collaboration with Chinese financial institutions such as the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the People’s Bank of China, whose governor, Pan Gongsheng, also attended.
Deputy Governor for Economic Policy, Philip Ikeazor, opened the session by stressing the need to translate improvements in Nigeria’s macroeconomic fundamentals into higher investment and stronger financial markets. Nigeria’s Ambassador to China, Lt‑Gen. Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau (retd.), also addressed the gathering, underscoring the importance of direct engagement with businesses to understand the opportunities and constraints affecting financial activities between the two economies.
In a separate interactive session held in Yiwu, China, international logistician Mr. Festus Mbisiogu, chairman of Uzotex Bonded Terminal and Blue Diamond Group, presented on “Beyond the Bottleneck: Rethinking Nigeria’s Logistics Challenges and Unlocking Smarter Cargo Solutions.” He highlighted that delayed payments, exchange‑rate uncertainty and limited access to reliable settlement channels can disrupt supply chains, increase costs and affect consumers.
“Many of the most expensive logistics mistakes occur before cargo reaches Nigeria,” Mbisiogu said, stressing that compliance should be treated as an investment in protecting cargo, capital and customer confidence.
Mbisiogu identified inaccurate documentation as a major cause of cargo delays, urging importers and agents to ensure consistency across shipment descriptions, quantities, declared values, weights and consignee details. He advocated for pre‑arrival checks, digital document management and standardised verification procedures to identify and correct errors before shipments reach their destinations. He also argued that properly managed bonded terminals could serve as strategic logistics hubs, improving cargo visibility, storage flexibility and coordination among customs authorities, shipping lines, clearing agents and transport operators, provided they adhere to accurate record‑keeping and transparent operational procedures.
<small>Source: The Sun Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>
