As of January 31st, 2023, Google will no longer let loan applications that do not have the proper licenses be distributed through its Play Store. According to Google’s policies, all lending applications must provide copies of their relevant market licenses before being accepted into the marketplace.
By providing a permission certificate from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), lending apps in Nigeria would no longer be able to use the platform after January 31, 2023.
In light of Google’s impending removal of some Nigerian loan applications, you should probably check the date here. For lending applications targeting users in Nigeria, Kenya, India, the Philippines, and Indonesia, the new Google policy guidelines spell out what is expected of developers.
Illegal loan services often set up shops in these nations.
According to Google, the policy covers both direct loan providers and applications that help users find alternative lenders.
The regulation goes into force on January 31, 2023, but all apps, both new and old, will have until November 16, 2022, at the latest, to bring themselves up to speed.
Google has issued a statement on lending apps in Nigeria that claim to be compliant with the FCCPC.
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) of Nigeria require all “Digital Money Lenders (DML)” to register with the FCCPC and abide by its LIMITED INTERIM REGULATORY/ REGISTRATION FRAMEWORK AND GUIDELINES FOR DIGITAL LENDING, 2022 (as may be updated from time to time).
Google Play may seek further information or documentation from you to verify that you are in compliance with all relevant regulations and licenses.
You may remember that the FCCPC has recently implemented measures to crack down on unlicensed loan applications in the nation, which are commonly referred to as loan sharks because of their predatory nature. Recently, the Commission requested that Google take down four lending applications from its Play Store because they were being used for illegal activities. These mobile programs included Maxi Credit, Here4U, ChaCha, and SoftPay.
According to the Commission’s findings, the mentioned applications are owned by other widely used apps that are also under investigation for potentially illegal or unethical behavior or a breach of user privacy.
More than one app used to evade the Commission’s oversight was developed by the same business, Soko Loan, as was previously reported.
Despite the efforts of the FCCPC, many Nigerians continue to fall prey to illegal lending applications, and the app store continues to see a steady stream of new apps offering loans.
Some of these applications may already be functioning outside of the app store, but the new Google policy is meant to limit users’ ability to access them through the service.