Nigeria’s digital lending boom was built on small, instant loans between ₦5,000 ($3.61) and ₦10,000 ($7.21) disbursed within minutes on sleek apps. But that model is beginning to shift. Digital lenders across the country are retreating from small-ticket loans, shifting toward larger loans and borrowers with verifiable income as regulatory pressure, tighter privacy rules, and rising recovery costs erode the economics of nano-lending. Many early loan apps depended on intrusive phone data, SMS logs, contacts, and app activity to assess borrowers and pressure defaulters. When borrowers defaulted, some lenders resorted to shaming tactics by sending disgraceful messages to their contacts. Regulators and platform operators have since curtailed those practices, stripping lenders of both a key r...