The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has announced a new initiative offering free business name registration to 3,500 small businesses spread across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The Registrar-General of the Commission, Hussaini Magaji, made the disclosure in Abuja during activities commemorating the CAC’s 35th anniversary.
According to him, the programme is designed to lower the financial barriers that often discourage micro and small enterprises from formalising their operations.
Magaji explained that the gesture underscores the Commission’s commitment to strengthening entrepreneurship, reducing start-up costs, and promoting inclusive economic growth nationwide.
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He noted that the free registrations would be fairly distributed across all states and the FCT.
He further stated that encouraging small businesses to formalise their operations would improve their access to government support services, financing opportunities, and broader participation in the formal economy.
Reflecting on the Commission’s 35-year journey, Magaji described the CAC’s evolution as one marked by innovation, reform, and dedication to national development.
He highlighted the agency’s transition into a technology-driven regulator focused on efficiency, transparency, and alignment with global best practices.
As part of its digital expansion efforts, the CAC boss revealed plans to sign a collaboration agreement with Google aimed at strengthening the Commission’s digital infrastructure and improving service delivery.
He said the partnership is expected to enhance the performance of the CAC’s online portal and further simplify the business registration process in Nigeria.
Magaji also announced the launch of a revamped CAC website equipped with new digital tools, including an AI-powered legal assistant and a business name generator.
The AI Lawyer, he explained, will provide instant guidance on CAC laws and procedures, while the name generator is intended to help entrepreneurs easily identify and reserve scalable business names.
The newly announced programme follows a similar initiative introduced in collaboration with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN).
That earlier scheme aimed to facilitate the free registration of 250,000 youth-led businesses.
However, it remains unclear how many businesses have been successfully registered under that programme since its launch in October last year.
At the time, Magaji had encouraged Nigerian youths to take advantage of the opportunity to formalise their ventures and integrate into the structured economy.
While promoting easier registration for new businesses, the Commission has also stepped up enforcement of compliance standards. Recently, the CAC disclosed that it deregistered more than 400,000 companies in 2025 due to prolonged inactivity and failure to meet statutory filing obligations.
According to Magaji, the mass deregistration exercise was necessary to sanitise the national companies register and preserve the credibility of Nigeria’s corporate regulatory system.
He said removing dormant and non-compliant entities would strengthen transparency and boost confidence in the country’s business environment.
The Commission’s latest free registration initiative, therefore, comes as part of a broader strategy — one that seeks to both expand formal participation in the economy and reinforce regulatory discipline within Nigeria’s corporate framework.
