In a bold step toward digitizing Nigeria’s business environment, the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has officially launched the pilot phase of its new Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered business registration portal.
The groundbreaking announcement was made by the Registrar-General of the CAC, Malam Hussaini Magaji, during the 2025 Stakeholders Forum held in Port Harcourt. According to Magaji,
“the initiative is a major milestone in Nigeria’s business facilitation drive.”
This new portal represents a full overhaul of the existing Company Registration Portal (CRP) and introduces a range of advanced features aimed at simplifying, speeding up, and modernizing the process of business registration in the country.
A major highlight of the upgraded system is its instant name reservation capability.
Magaji likened the new process to creating an email account — fast, seamless, and user-friendly. The AI technology integrated into the platform can even suggest available alternatives to proposed business names and approve them in real-time.
In addition, the CAC boss revealed another key innovation: the ability to register a business using just the National Identification Number (NIN) of a director or proprietor. This move eliminates several traditional bottlenecks and aligns with Nigeria’s growing emphasis on digital identification.
The ultimate goal? To complete the entire business registration process and generate a certificate within 30 minutes, pending real-time validation of the NIN.
This forward-thinking development is expected to significantly reduce delays, enhance transparency, and encourage more entrepreneurs — both local and international — to formalize their businesses in Nigeria.
With this launch, the CAC is not only embracing innovation but also setting the pace for government agencies across the continent in using AI to drive public service efficiency.
