Can You Run Multiple Businesses Under One CAC Registration in Nigeria? (Full Legal Guide)
If you already have a registered business in Nigeria and you're thinking of starting another one, you've probably wondered whether your existing CAC registration can cover the new venture, or whether you need to start from scratch.
The short answer is: yes, but only under specific conditions. Whether it makes sense depends on your business structure, your objects clause, your risk exposure, and your long-term plans. This guide breaks all of that down, including the actual legal framework, costs, and common mistakes that can land entrepreneurs in trouble.
What "One CAC Registration" Actually Means
A CAC registration creates a single legal entity: either a Business Name (Sole Proprietorship or Partnership) or a Limited Liability Company (LTD). The rules for running multiple businesses differ significantly between these two structures, so the distinction matters before anything else.
Business Names: Why They're Limiting for Multiple Ventures
When you register a Business Name with the CAC, you register one specific trading name. Under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020, a Business Name registration does not create a separate legal entity; it simply records that an individual or partnership is trading under that name.
This has two practical consequences. First, you cannot legally trade under a different, unregistered name. If you have a Business Name registered as "Zara Styles" and you want to launch a skincare line called "GlowLab," you cannot operate GlowLab under that same registration. Each trading name must be separately registered with the CAC.
Second, a Business Name provides no limited liability protection. If any venture run under your Business Name incurs debt or faces a lawsuit, your personal assets (your savings, property, and other belongings) are fully exposed.
For a small side business with low risk, one Business Name may be adequate. For serious expansion into multiple ventures, it creates real legal and financial vulnerability.
Limited Liability Companies: Where Flexibility Lives
Under a Limited Liability Company registered pursuant to CAMA 2020, you can legally operate multiple businesses under one CAC registration, provided your Memorandum and Articles of Association (MEMART) permits it.
The Objects Clause Is Everything
Your MEMART contains an "objects clause" that defines what your company is legally authorised to do. If your objects clause is broad, covering general trading, consultancy, logistics, technology services, agricultural production, and so on, you can operate any of those activities under one entity without additional registration.
If your objects clause is narrow (say, restricted to printing and publishing), and you want to expand into e-commerce, you must first amend your MEMART before operating in that space. This is not optional. Operating outside your registered objects is a breach of CAMA and can expose directors to personal liability, void contracts entered into outside the objects, and complicate banking and regulatory relationships.
How to amend your objects clause: You'll need to pass a special resolution at a general meeting of shareholders, file the amended MEMART with the CAC along with the prescribed fee (currently ₦10,000–₦15,000 for the filing, plus professional fees if you use a lawyer or consultant), and wait for CAC to process the update. Processing typically takes two to four weeks through the CAC's online portal, though timelines vary.
If you are already operating outside your objects clause, address it now. Retroactive compliance is possible; it's simply more awkward and occasionally requires additional documentation to demonstrate the company's actual activities.
A Direct Comparison: Business Name vs. LTD for Multiple Businesses
The Real Risks of Putting Everything Under One Company
Operating multiple businesses under a single LTD has genuine advantages, but it comes with risks that many entrepreneurs underestimate.
Shared liability is the most significant. If one of your ventures is sued, defaults on a loan, or runs up significant debts, those obligations attach to the entire company, not just that venture. Your logistics arm can be dragged into a dispute that originated in your beauty products line.
Regulatory complexity compounds this. Different business activities typically require separate industry licences regardless of how your CAC registration is structured. NAFDAC registration for food and cosmetic products, SON certification for certain manufactured goods, CBN licensing for financial services, and NCC permits for telecommunications are all independent of your CAC status. Running multiple regulated industries under one entity means managing multiple compliance calendars, and a regulatory failure in one area can affect the entire company.
Exit difficulty is a longer-term problem. If you eventually want to sell one of your businesses, or bring in investors for just one venture, separating it from the main company is legally messy and often expensive. Buyers and investors generally want a clean, standalone entity, not a share of a mixed-use company.
Tax Implications
From FIRS's perspective, your LTD is a single taxpayer regardless of how many business lines it operates. This means one Company Income Tax (CIT) filing at the applicable rate (20% for small companies with turnover below ₦25 million; 30% for medium and large companies), one VAT registration if your annual turnover exceeds ₦25 million, and one set of annual returns.
The upside is that losses from one business line can offset profits from another, potentially reducing your overall tax burden. The downside is that strong performance in one venture cannot be insulated from the tax liabilities generated by another. Everything consolidates.
You cannot file separate tax returns for internal divisions of the same company. If one business generates significant taxable income while another is burning cash, they are treated together.
When You Should Register Separate Entities
Separate registration starts making sense when one or more of the following apply:
- One business carries substantially higher legal or financial risk than the others
- You plan to bring in different investors for different ventures (investors generally want equity in a specific business, not a stake in everything you own)
- You intend to sell one venture independently in the future
- The businesses are in completely unrelated industries with different regulatory environments
- A lender, partner, or regulatory body requires a standalone entity as a condition of doing business
In these situations, the holding company and subsidiary structure is often the most elegant solution.
Three Practical Structures for Nigerian Entrepreneurs
Option 1: One LTD with a Broad Objects ClauseBest for related businesses with moderate and roughly comparable risk profiles. Ensure your objects clause is wide enough to cover all current and anticipated activities, and review it annually as your business evolves. This is the lowest-cost structure to maintain.
Option 2: Holding Company with SubsidiariesBest for serious diversification across distinct industries. You register a parent company that owns shares in multiple subsidiary companies, each separately incorporated. This gives you liability separation between ventures, cleaner financial reporting, easier paths to investment or sale, and the ability to bring different shareholders into different subsidiaries. The trade-off is higher compliance costs, as each subsidiary must file its own returns and maintain its own records.
Option 3: Separate, Independent CompaniesBest for completely unrelated industries, high-risk sectors, or situations where the ventures have different ownership structures entirely. This is the cleanest separation but also the most expensive to maintain from a compliance standpoint.
How to Check Whether Your Current Registration Covers Your New Business
The process is straightforward:
- Retrieve your MEMART from your incorporation documents or request a copy from the CAC portal
- Locate the objects clause; it will be in the Memorandum section, typically near the beginning
- Read it carefully. Does it explicitly include your new business activity, or is it broad enough to reasonably encompass it?
- If it is too narrow, file an amendment before you begin operating the new activity
If you are unsure how to interpret your objects clause, a business lawyer or registered CAC agent can review it and advise you in a straightforward consultation. The cost of that advice is trivial compared to the cost of operating outside your legal scope.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Most structural problems Nigerian entrepreneurs face are avoidable. The most common are expanding into new activities without reviewing the objects clause first; trading under unregistered brand names and assuming the parent company's registration covers it; ignoring industry-specific licences and assuming CAC registration is sufficient; and mixing personal and company finances in ways that can pierce the corporate veil and expose directors to personal liability.
The recurring theme is that these mistakes are far cheaper to prevent than to fix. Restructuring a company after the fact, especially once investors, lenders, or regulatory bodies are involved, is time-consuming and expensive.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use one CAC registration for two businesses in Nigeria?Yes, under an LTD with an objects clause that covers both activities. Under a Business Name, each trading name generally requires its own registration.
Can I operate different brands under one LTD?Yes, though each brand name should ideally be protected through trademark registration with the Trademarks Registry, which is separate from CAC registration.
How much does it cost to amend my objects clause?CAC filing fees are currently in the ₦10,000–₦15,000 range. If you engage a lawyer or consultant to handle the process, expect additional professional fees on top of that.
Can I convert my Business Name to an LTD?Yes. It requires fresh incorporation as an LTD; there is no direct conversion process. Your existing Business Name registration remains valid but the new LTD is treated as a new entity.
What happens if I'm already operating outside my objects clause?You should regularise this as soon as possible by filing an amendment. The longer you operate outside your objects, the more complicated it becomes, particularly if you need to enter into significant contracts or raise external financing.
The Bottom Line
Running multiple businesses under one CAC registration is legally possible under an LTD with a well-drafted objects clause, and for related, moderate-risk ventures it is often the most practical and cost-effective approach. But the structure that works for your first two ventures may not serve you well when you're running five, especially if they span different industries, have different risk profiles, or will eventually need separate investment or exit paths.
The right time to think about structure is before you expand, not after problems arise. Review your objects clause, assess your liability exposure, and get proper advice if the picture is unclear. Structure is not the most exciting part of building a business, but it is the part that determines how well the business holds together when things get complicated.
