Federal Commission Orders Removal of 18 Unapproved Lending Apps From Google Playstore

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has taken action against Google Limited Liability Company (LLC) and directed them to remove applications (apps) of 18 Digital Money Lenders (DMLs) from its Playstore.

These DMLs have not received relevant regulatory approvals, and their operational practices have caused them to be labeled as “loan sharks” in Nigeria. Their methods often involve sharp practices, customer intimidation, and unconventional loan recovery techniques.

The list of the 18 non-compliant DMLs includes Getloan, Joy Cash-Loan Up to 1,000,000, Camelloan, Cashlawn, Nairaloan, Eaglecash, Moneytreefinance Made Easy, Luckyloan Personal Loan, Cashme, Easynaira, Swiftcash, Crediting, Swiftkash, Hen Credit loan, Nut loan, Cash door, Cashpal, and Nairaeasy gist loan.

The competition regulatory body made this disclosure through a statement signed by its Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Babatunde Irukera.

The statement pointed out that these apps were not among those previously delisted on July 20th, 2023.

According to the statement, “The Commission, as part of its continuing investigation and audit, has identified additional apps operating on the Google Playstore without regulatory approval or in violation of the Limited Interim Regulatory/Registration Framework and Guidelines for Digital Lending, 2022 (Guidelines).

“Accordingly, the Commission has entered a further order requiring Google to immediately remove, withdraw or drawdown the following apps.

“The Commission will continue engaging Google to clarify how and why apps that have not received relevant regulatory approvals are available on Google’s platform (Play store).

“Under the Guidelines, only DMLs that have been subjected to regulatory scrutiny and compliance evidenced by written approval from the Commission are allowed on Playstore.

“The Commission notes that some DMLs have resorted to the use of Android Package Kits (APK) file formats to reach consumers outside of the Google Playstore.