Energy, fintech, and telecommunications companies generate the highest number of consumer complaints in Nigeria, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has declared.

The agency’s Executive Vice Chairman, Tunji Bello, made this known on Thursday while briefing State House correspondents at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja. Bello said the commission had received thousands of complaints from Nigerians across these sectors and had recovered over N20bn for consumers as of March 2026.

According to him, the commission resolved more than 9,000 complaints and recovered over N10bn for consumers between March and August 2025 alone.

“Let me tell you where most complaints come from. Mostly on energy, fintech. For energy, people complain about the electricity supply, and so on. That’s where we get most complaints. And that led to recent action in Lagos against a disco. Also fintech. You know, people do a lot of transactions online, and most of them are either given unfair terms.

“Somebody has borrowed money, and then you discover that when they ask to pay back, the interest rate is outrageous. Most of them we have interrogated, and we’ve been able to resolve as many as possible,” Bello stated.

He added that the telecommunications sector and banks also account for significant complaints, noting that the commission receives about 25,000 complaints annually through various platforms. Bello said cumulative recoveries for consumers had exceeded N20bn as of March 2026, up from N10bn recorded in October 2025.

The FCCPC boss also revealed that the commission had begun monitoring petrol prices and other commodities across the country following the escalating United States-Israeli-Iran conflict in the Middle East. He said the agency deployed monitors nationwide to track price movements and prevent fuel suppliers and petrol stations from exploiting Nigerians.

“We are presently monitoring the situation as it affects prices in Nigeria and various prices. Because it’s not just petrol. Petrol has supply effects on some of the things we eat or we take on a daily basis.

“So we are monitoring. I will still want to see it as a temporary measure. But you know, the federal government under the leadership of our president has recorded massive gains in the last two years, and we don’t want to see this as something that will now begin to offset that progress,” Bello said.

He explained that the commission was working with regulators in the petroleum sector to ensure compliance with pricing regulations.

“Whatever the fuel suppliers dictate, if the petrol stations are not complying, those are the things we are trying to monitor. If somebody has reduced N100 or N200 from it and you are still selling your own for N1,500 per litre, we should be able to ask you, ‘ Why are you doing that? So those are the things that our monitors are outside already monitoring developments,” he stated.

Bello also disclosed that the commission was collaborating with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission to strengthen compliance oversight.

In the aviation sector, Bello said the commission would compel airlines that hiked ticket prices during the December 2025 Yuletide period to refund excess charges to passengers who were exploited.

He disclosed that investigations into price-fixing allegations involving about five or six airlines had been concluded and that the commission would soon release its final report with penalties.

“We investigated following the complaints that they fixed prices during the Christmas period. Prices of airline tickets were around N45,000 to N50,000, and suddenly became N400,000 to N500,000, from N400,000 to N670,000 during the Christmas period. So we followed up through our investigation, and we were able to conclude that it was a kind of price-fixing mechanism,” Bello said.

He added that the preliminary report had already found the airlines culpable of price exploitation. “The preliminary report already found them wanting in that regard, so the final report is going to be issued very soon.

“And what we are also considering is to look at a situation where we have to ask them to refund the excess to the passengers, which they exploited. So those are some things we are considering. By the time we come up with the final report, you will see that,” he stated.

When pressed to name the airlines involved, Bello declined but confirmed that about five or six carriers were under investigation. “I know about five or six, but I don’t want to mention names,” he said.

The commission’s action followed complaints from Nigerians who travelled during the Christmas and New Year period and were forced to pay exorbitant fares for domestic flights due to high demand and limited seat availability.

Many travellers had taken to social media to protest the sudden spike in ticket prices, describing them as exploitative given the prevailing economic hardship. Bello said preliminary findings suggested that the airlines might have engaged in collective price-fixing, a practice prohibited under the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act.

Price-fixing occurs when competing businesses agree to set prices at a certain level rather than allowing market forces to determine pricing, and it is considered anti-competitive behaviour punishable under Nigerian law. Previous enforcement actions by the FCCPC have typically focused on fines and penalties payable to the government.

During the briefing, the FCCPC also addressed concerns about electricity tariff bands, with officials defending the Band A classification while acknowledging that consumers are not always receiving the promised 20 hours of daily power supply.

The Commission’s Executive Commissioner of Operations, Louis Odion, explained that the commission’s role was not price control but ensuring that consumers were not exploited through the pricing of products or services.

“We are not a price control agency, but what we try to do is to ensure that consumers are not exploited, either by way of the pricing of products or services. In the electricity sector, that is where we have most of the challenges that consumers contend with in this country,” he said.

Odion disclosed that Band A consumers, who pay higher tariffs, are entitled to at least 20 hours of electricity supply daily, while Band B consumers should receive 16 hours. He urged consumers to formally complain when they do not receive the promised hours of supply, noting that the commission operates an evidence-based system.

“A lot of times, if you go ask them, they will tell you this estate is actually on Band A, but we haven’t received any formal complaint from the estate as to the fact that this is the number of hours of electricity we are receiving. Our operational work is evidence-based. If we do not have evidence of a particular issue, we are not able to actually act on it,” he explained.

On prosecution powers, the commission’s Head of Legal Services, Chizenum Nsitem, revealed that the FCCPC had prosecuted over 25 cases since the operationalisation of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act in 2019.

“At the last count, we have over 25 cases that we have been able to prosecute, given the infractions of the provisions of the FCCPA. For the fear of being prosecuted, undertakings have complied relatively with provisions of the FCCPA,” Nsitem said.

He disclosed that the commission currently has over 30 cases pending at the Federal High Court and the FCCPC Tribunal, including five cases at the Court of Appeal where undertakings have appealed tribunal decisions.

The legal chief cited Section 20(2) of the FCCPA, which empowers legal officers to prosecute on behalf of the commission, and Section 113, which allows referral of cases to the Attorney-General of the Federation.

The FCCPC was established to protect and promote the interests and welfare of consumers, ensure that consumers’ rights are respected, and provide them with access to information to make informed choices.

Nigeria’s aviation sector has faced criticism over fluctuating ticket prices, with airlines attributing high fares to rising aviation fuel costs, foreign exchange challenges, and operational expenses.

On cement prices, Bello said the commission had set up an investigative team to probe pricing across the federation following complaints from Nigerians.

“We are already investigating the cement prices across the Federation. I don’t want to preempt that investigation. We have set up an investigative team already. They are going around at the moment. And I’m sure by the time we come out with our full report, it will be published, and everybody will see,” Bello said.

On telecommunications tariffs, Bello revealed that the FCCPC worked with the Nigerian Communications Commission last year to reduce a proposed 100 per cent tariff increase by telecom companies to 50 per cent.

“Last year, when they were going to increase the rates telecoms were charging, through our MOU with them, they consulted us. The telecom companies were going to increase by 100 per cent. We persuaded through that negotiation that no, you cannot, because of the inflation rate at that time. We were able to manage them to come down to 50 per cent,” Bello said.