The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria announced on Tuesday that companies will no longer be required to submit multiple copies of their financial statements to different government agencies and regulators, following the launch of a national repository for audited financial statements.

Vanguard reported that this disclosure was made by the Chief Executive Officer of the FRC, Rabiu Olowo, during the official commissioning of the Council’s new headquarters in Lagos. The event was attended by Vice President Kashim Shettima, who was represented by his Special Adviser to the President on Economic Affairs, Dr. Tope Fasua, who performed the commissioning of the new head office.

According to Olowo, companies would no longer be required to submit separate financial statements to the Corporate Affairs Commission, the FRC, the Accountant-General of the Federation and various sector regulators.

He said: “Before now, you had companies-and some of them are here-that would submit one financial statement to the Corporate Affairs Commission, one to the FRC, another to the Accountant-General, and another to their sectoral regulator, such as the CBN.”

He added: “But today, that cannot happen any longer. We have a national repository for financial statements in Nigeria.”

Olowo explained that the repository was one of several reforms implemented by the Council since 2023, as part of its transformation agenda centred on “good governance, increased transparency and excellent stability and enforcement.”

He further disclosed that the FRC had “strengthened audit regulation through comprehensive practice reviews, commenced implementation and enforcement in non-financial reporting, introduced the Non-Compliance with Laws and Regulations, NOCLAR, framework and strengthened valuation regulation.”

He also noted: “We have expanded our regulatory reach. We have integrated our database with the National Identification Number verification system.”

Speaking at the event, Vice President Shettima emphasised that strong institutions are crucial to attracting investment, stating: “Capital is a cautious traveller. Money does not follow security alone; it follows confidence. And confidence follows institutions.”

He further stated: “Transformation cannot be sustained by policies alone. We must build institutions capable of carrying those policies beyond individual personalities and political cycles.”

Also speaking at the event, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, stressed that regulatory certainty remains vital to Nigeria’s competitiveness, saying: “Investors understand commercial risk. They assess it, price it and make decisions accordingly. It is much harder to price regulatory uncertainty.”

She added: “Predictability, transparency and efficient administration are not simply conveniences for businesses. They are fundamental components of national competitiveness.”

Olowo noted that the new headquarters represents a significant milestone for the FRC, which evolved from the Nigerian Accounting Standards Board established in 1982.

He said: “Today, the Council has a home. This building belongs not to one Executive Secretary or CEO, not to one board, not even to the minister or the President. It belongs to Nigeria.”