finance
Panama Papers at 10: How the leaks reshaped Nigeria’s transparency laws
Ten years after the Panama Papers exposed offshore holdings tied to top politicians and businesspeople, Nigeria adopted mandatory beneficial ownership disclosure in law, built sector registers, and launched tax regularization programs, even though the leaks did not produce direct prosecutions.
Apr 3rd 2026 · Nigeria
Insights
- PREMIUM TIMES was the only Nigerian outlet granted direct access and published more than 30 stories naming over 140 Nigerians linked to offshore companies.
- No Nigerian named in the Panama Papers was prosecuted as a direct result of the revelations.
- The 2020 rework of the Companies and Allied Matters Act requires disclosure of persons of significant control and the Corporate Affairs Commission now collects beneficial ownership at company registration.
- NEITI issued a beneficial ownership roadmap in 2016 and, with regulators, completed an oil and gas beneficial ownership register in 2020.
- The Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme allowed taxpayers to regularize previously undisclosed assets and income rather than face immediate punitive enforcement.
Sources
- Ten years since Panama Papers: What did they reveal, did anything change? www.aljazeera.com
- PANAMA PAPERS @10: How Premium Times exposed top Nigerian officials’ assets in tax havens www.premiumtimesng.com
- 10 Years On: How Panama Papers rewrote Nigeria’s transparency law, sparked regulatory policies www.premiumtimesng.com
- Panama Papers: 10 years on www.aljazeera.com