The Senate has passed a bill to repeal and re-enact the law establishing the National Insurance Commission, paving the way for the agency to be renamed the Insurance Regulatory Commission.

The Insurance Regulatory Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2026, was approved after the Senate adopted the report of its Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions.

Chairman of the committee, Senator Adetokunbo Abiru, said the proposed legislation is intended to replace the National Insurance Commission Act of 1997, which he said no longer reflects the realities of Nigeria's insurance industry or current global regulatory standards. He said the change of name is aimed at better reflecting the agency's regulatory role and eliminating confusion associated with its existing designation.

Senator Abiru said the bill strengthens the independence of the Commission by giving it greater powers to make regulatory decisions, issue guidelines and directives, exchange information with local and international regulators, and intervene in financially distressed insurance companies. The legislation also provides legal protection for the Commission and its staff in the lawful discharge of their statutory duties.