Court Orders MTN, Airtel to Restore Airtime Credit Services as Subscribers Await Relief to millions of Nigerian subscribers who have been left stranded since the popular emergency borrowing feature was abruptly suspended in mid-April 2026.
Millions of Nigerian telecom subscribers may soon regain access to airtime and data credit services after two Federal High Court rulings dismantled the regulatory basis that led to their suspension. The affected services, including MTN Nigeria’s XtraTime and Airtel’s data credit offerings, were halted mid-April following compliance concerns tied to new digital lending regulations introduced by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
The disruption left millions of prepaid users stranded without access to emergency airtime borrowing an essential stopgap widely used by low-income earners, traders, and small business operators.
What the Court Ruled
The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, presided over by Justice A. Lewis-Allagoa, on April 15 granted an interim injunction restraining the FCCPC from enforcing critical provisions of its Digital, Electronic, Online or Non-Traditional Consumer Lending Regulations 2025. The court also restrained MTN Nigeria and Airtel Networks Limited from suspending or restricting access to telecom infrastructure including short codes, USSD channels, SMS systems, and billing platforms on the basis of the FCCPC regulations.
The Abuja court further ruled that telecom operators could not disregard contractual notice periods or dispute resolution procedures in a bid to comply with newly introduced regulatory directives. The twin rulings have effectively undermined the legal justification cited by telecom operators for suspending airtime and data credit services, raising expectations that services could be restored imminently.
The Regulatory Battle Behind the Suspension
At the centre of the dispute is a lingering jurisdictional clash between regulators. The FCCPC had, in July 2025, extended its oversight to include digital lending services bringing airtime and data credit products under a licensing regime originally designed to tackle exploitative loan applications.
Faced with regulatory uncertainty and potential sanctions, MTN and Airtel opted to suspend the services pending clarity, a move that triggered widespread backlash. While the FCCPC has insisted it did not order the suspension and described the shutdown as a business decision by the telecom operators, industry players have pushed back, accusing the commission of regulatory overreach.
Nigeria’s three largest telecom operators MTN, Airtel, and Globacom stand to lose more than ₦300 billion in annual revenue after the FCCPC approved five independent firms to take over the airtime and data lending market. The commission approved Total Tim Nigeria Limited, Rane Interactive Medien CLS Limited, Mode NG Applications Limited, Cloud Interactive Associate Limited, and Coverage Broadband Limited to provide the services going forward.
Telcos Yet to Comply as millions are still waiting
Nairtime Nigeria Ltd, which provides the technology backbone for the credit services, is now pushing aggressively for enforcement of the court order. The company argues that the telcos’ defiance violates its rights and penalises over 156 million subscribers who rely on these services, particularly in the informal economy.
Days after the judgment was delivered, the services remain in limbo, leaving millions of Nigerians without access to critical emergency airtime and data credit. The silence of the FCCPC has raised eyebrows among consumer rights advocates, with its perceived inaction in enforcing the court-ordered restoration of service being viewed as a lapse in institutional accountability.
Industry analysts estimate that airtime lending transactions in Nigeria are worth between ₦500 billion and ₦1.2 trillion annually, underscoring their role as a critical layer of informal microcredit supporting economic activity, particularly within the informal sector.
For the latest regulatory updates on Nigeria’s telecom sector, visit the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
