By Atoyebi Nike
The Federal Government has introduced the Federal Treasury Receipt (FTR) – a landmark digital initiative designed to close revenue leakages and enhance fiscal transparency across all ministries and agencies.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the FTR provides a single, verifiable digital proof for all payments into federal accounts, ensuring every government-issued receipt matches actual funds received by the Treasury.
The system is part of a broader reform that includes the Central Billing System (CBS) and the Revenue Optimisation and Assurance Platform (RevOp), which went live on August 1, 2025. Together, they aim to automate revenue reconciliation, unify billing standards, and provide real-time visibility into government inflows.
The ministry said the goal is to ensure “every naira due to the Federation is captured, reconciled, and accounted for.”
If fully implemented, the FTR could significantly improve public finance management by reducing unrecorded inflows, strengthening audit trails, and building public confidence in government revenue systems.
Nigeria’s low tax-to-GDP ratio-below 10%- underscores the urgency of digital reforms to expand the revenue base and reduce dependence on oil. The IMF, in its 2025 Article IV report, had urged Nigeria to improve tax collection efficiency and strengthen digital oversight-objectives now aligned with the new FTR framework.
The Treasury reform builds on past initiatives like the Treasury Single Account (TSA) launched in 2015, which consolidated government funds but fell short of tracking receipt-level transparency.
A 30-day pilot phase involving 10 federal agencies is now underway, with nationwide rollout expected after evaluation. The system will also integrate with the upcoming Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), set to begin operations in January 2026, as part of the broader fiscal transformation agenda.
