Financial technology company OPay has commenced legal proceedings against individuals and groups accused of creating and circulating viral claims that the platform planned to suspend its operations in Nigeria.
The action comes amid a rising wave of misinformation targeting non-bank financial institutions and mobile payment platforms in Nigeria, as regulatory crackdowns and concerns over digital security continue to heighten public sensitivity to unverified reports.
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos on Wednesday, OPay’s Chief Legal Counsel, Akinfolabi Rokosu, said the company would pursue those behind the claims and ensure they face the full weight of the law.
“OPay is taking legal action against those responsible for deliberately creating and circulating this callous information. We will pursue them, and we will ensure that the law takes its full course; there will be no impunity,” he said.
He said the company has formally engaged the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force to identify and apprehend those behind the false claims, adding that one related case is already before the court.
“This is not about silencing anyone, but it is about accountability, customer protection, and respect for the rule of law,” Rokosu said, adding that the Central Bank of Nigeria has officially classified the viral claims as fake news.
Nigeria’s banking and financial services sector has come under increased scrutiny in recent months as the CBN strengthens anti-money laundering measures and tightens compliance oversight of fintech companies. Rumours of account freezes or operational shutdowns have repeatedly triggered concerns among small business owners and micro-merchants who depend heavily on mobile wallets to manage their daily cash flow.
Reinforcing the company’s position, OPay’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Technology Officer, Dotun Adekunle, reassured customers that its services remain fully operational across all channels. He noted that the viral notice falsely claimed the company would shut down its operations on September 1.
“OPay is here, OPay is operating, and OPay is going nowhere,” Adekunle stated.
“In fact, according to the false information itself, OPay was supposed to have shut down yesterday, 1 September, but it is 2 September, and we are still here,” he added.
He urged consumers, merchants and banking partners to remain calm and disregard unverified information circulating on social media.
“A message can look official and still be completely false. A logo can be copied, and a document can be designed to look convincing, but false is false no matter how many times it is shared,” Adekunle stated.
OPay, which operates under a Mobile Money Operator licence issued by the CBN, serves more than 30 million users and millions of merchants across Nigeria. Analysts warn that, given the volume of transactions processed through agency banking networks, false reports about operational disruptions could pose broader risks to the financial inclusion gains made over the past decade.
