ABUJA — Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor Yemi Cardoso told finance officials from developing nations that cross-border payments underpin global monetary stability. Speaking at the G-24 Technical Group Meetings in Abuja, he warned that current systems leave millions in emerging markets cut off from economic opportunities.

Cardoso delivered the plenary address titled “Digital Cross-Border Payments, Global Finance, and Economic Transformation – Opportunities and Risks.” The event carried the theme “Mobilising Finance for Sustainable, Inclusive, and Job-rich Transformation.”

“Cross-border payments remain too slow, too costly, and too fragmented, especially for developing economies,” Cardoso said. He pointed to remittance corridors with costs exceeding 6 percent, multi-day settlement delays, and compliance hurdles that sideline small and medium enterprises from world trade.

Fixing these issues ranks as a macroeconomic priority, not just a technical tweak, according to Cardoso. Digital tools offer a path forward. Instant payment systems, interoperable platforms, distributed ledger technology, and secure digital IDs can cut remittance and trade expenses. They also speed settlements, enhance transparency, and open doors for underserved households and businesses.

Such systems bolster monetary policy transmission, drive financial inclusion, and curb informal economies when built with solid governance, Cardoso added. Real-world cases prove the point. India’s Unified Payments Interface now connects with Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, driving down remittance fees and enabling instant settlements. Brazil’s PIX system reached over 70 percent of adults in two years and feeds into Latin American cross-border tests.

“These examples demonstrate what is achievable for G-24 members, including lower costs, better liquidity, stronger SMEs, job creation, and deeper regional integration,” Cardoso said.

Nigeria shows how policy muscle turns promise into results. The Central Bank has overhauled regulations for digital finance, tightened oversight on payment switches and infrastructure, and beefed up agent banking rules to tackle money laundering and terrorism financing risks. Interoperability across channels has surged, paving the way for scale.

Next up: the Payment System Vision 2028, crafted with industry input around five priorities—increasing innovation, hardening resilience, and pushing inclusion. A key focus targets cross-border improvements, where Nigeria has logged tangible gains, Cardoso noted.

Finance Minister Wale Edun, who also spoke, urged Global South unity against mounting economic fragility. He described a world of uncertainties, vulnerabilities, and tensions between fragmentation and integration that threaten trade and debt.

“Deepening fragmentation can reduce global output by up to two percentage points and shrink global trade by more than two per cent, with developing and emerging markets bearing the brunt,” Edun said. Africa, home to 17 percent of humanity, musters just 3 percent of world trade and 2.5 percent of output. More splits would widen the gap, he warned, citing the 2026 Global Risk Report’s spotlight on economic confrontation via tariffs and sanctions.

Dr. Iyabo Masha, director and head of the G-24 secretariat, opened the meetings by sketching a global economy with “measured resilience but constrained ambition.” Emerging markets and developing economies grapple with shrinking policy room amid uncertainty, she said. Disinflation advances in advanced nations, but supply shocks, climate woes, and geopolitics keep inflation risks alive. Borrowing costs stay high for poorer countries, with debt burdens above pre-pandemic norms.

Masha outlined five forces at play: a steady yet uneven global economy, EMDE policy squeezes, short-term dangers, the push for transformation policies, and overdue Bretton Woods reforms. The meetings, she stressed, go beyond routine talks to recalibrate development paths as risks outpace institutional responses.