My Client is now mid-conversion to RC a few weeks slower than he'd like, but avoidable if he'd known this earlier. Don't be him. Know which one you're signing up for.
Think of BN as your starter house and RC as the one you build once you can afford it. Start free. Upgrade when funding, hiring, or contracts make it necessary. Plan for that day now instead of scrambling for it later.
So here's the real story: the free registration isn't a trap, it's a genuinely good deal. Grab it if you're just starting out zero cost beats the usual ₦(11k-₦/25k), no debate. Just don't assume it's the final form of your business.
There's a third option too, IT (Incorporated Trustees), but that's for NGOs and non-profits, not businesses chasing revenue. Different game entirely, worth knowing so you don't confuse the three.
An RC (registered company) is the fix. Separate legal entity. Limited liability. Can issue shares. It's what almost every serious investor, bank, and grant program is quietly assuming you already have.
It gets worse when you try to raise money. A BN can't issue shares. So the moment an investor wants equity, or a bank wants a formal structure, or a grant requires "limited liability", you're stuck. That's the call my Client got.
With a BN, you and the business are legally one and the same. Great for getting started fast. But if something goes wrong a lawsuit, a debt there's no wall between the business and your personal savings, your car, your house
But here's what nobody's saying out loud: the free thing you're signing up for is a Business Name (BN). Not a company. Not an RC. Two different words for two very different legal realities and most people won't realize it until it costs them something.
It starts with good news. SMEDAN and CAC just opened free business registration for 250,000 MSMEs. No fee, no agent, just https://t.co/kWw4V28aAR and a form. People are (rightly) rushing to apply before slots fill up.
A founder messaged me last week:
"I registered my business years ago, why did the investor's say I'm not a company?"
He wasn't wrong. He also wasn't right. Here's the mix-up that's about to trip up a lot of Nigerian founders.
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