AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
Do not rely on default rules. In the UK, an employer owns copyright in work an employee makes in the course of employment, but a contractor keeps copyright unless they assign it, and an assignment is effective only in writing signed by the assignor. Nigeria's Copyright Act 2022 likewise says an assignment has no effect unless it is in writing. So every Nigerian employee, contractor and employer-of-record hire should sign a written IP assignment in your company's favour, ideally before work starts.
For a software startup or agency, the most valuable things the Lagos team produces are intangible: source code, designs, copy, training material, data models. Investors and buyers will ask whether the company owns them. If the people who made them were engaged as contractors, through an employer of record or under a loosely drafted contract, the honest answer can be "not clearly", and that can stall a funding round or a sale.
The UK starting point
Section 11(2) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 says that where a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, or a film, is made by an employee in the course of employment, the employer is the first owner of any copyright, subject to any agreement to the contrary. Two points follow:
- The rule covers your employees, and only work made in the course of employment. Code written at weekends on a personal project is arguable.
- It does not cover contractors. A contractor is the first owner of what they create, and you have at most an implied licence to use it unless they assign it.
Section 90(3) adds that an assignment of copyright is not effective unless it is in writing signed by or on behalf of the assignor. An email saying "the code is yours" is not enough.
The Nigerian position
Your team creates the work in Nigeria, and the copyright that arises there is governed by Nigerian law. The Copyright Act 2022, as summarised by Esher & Makarios, treats copyright as movable property that can be assigned in whole or in part, and section 30(3) says an assignment or an exclusive licence has no effect unless it is in writing. A non-exclusive licence can be written, oral or inferred. The same summary notes that future works can be assigned, but not all future works, so a clause claiming everything the person will ever create is weaker than one tied to work done under the engagement. A separate Mondaq note on the Act explains that moral rights, such as the right to be named as author and to object to distortion, cannot be signed away during the author's life; contracts usually deal with them by a consent or waiver of enforcement as far as the law allows. Nigerian law has its own rules on works made in employment; a written assignment avoids relying on them.
Who signs what
| How the person is engaged | Who owns their work by default | What to put in place |
|---|---|---|
| Employee of your UK company | Your company, under the UK rule, for work in the course of employment | IP clause in the contract plus a signed assignment of anything outside the default |
| Employee of your Nigerian subsidiary | Likely the subsidiary, not the UK parent | Assignment from employee to subsidiary, and an intra-group assignment or licence to the parent |
| Contractor | The contractor | Signed assignment of all work under the engagement, on or before payment |
| Hired through an employer of record | Depends on the EOR's contract with the employee | Check the EOR contract assigns IP to the EOR and on to you; get a direct assignment if possible |
For the contractor side in more depth, see IP assignment from a Nigerian contractor and contractor agreements when hiring without an entity.
What a good assignment clause covers
- A present assignment ("hereby assigns") of copyright and other IP in all work created under the engagement.
- A description of the work covered, tied to the services, rather than all future works.
- A promise to sign any further documents needed, for example to register rights abroad.
- Disclosure of pre-existing material the person brings in, with a licence for you to use it.
- Open-source components listed, so you know what licences you inherit.
- Moral rights handled by consent or waiver as far as each law allows.
- Confidentiality that survives the end of the engagement.
- Delivery of source files, repositories and passwords on request and at the end.
Example (illustrative)
Example: a startup pays a Lagos contractor ₦4,500,000 over six months to build its mobile app, on a one-page agreement with no IP clause. During due diligence for a seed round, the investor's lawyer flags that the contractor owns the copyright in the code. The fix is a written assignment, but the contractor now has leverage, and may ask for payment to sign it. The same clause signed on day one would have cost nothing.
Trade marks are separate
Copyright protects the code and designs; the product name and logo are protected by trade marks, registered separately in each country. See registering a Nigerian trade mark from a UK company.
Where Pryme fits
A clean record of what was paid, to whom and for which work supports an IP chain. Each payment from a Pryme Business Account carries a receipt, which can be made verifiable through VerifyDoc.ai so an investor can confirm it has not been altered. See receipts.
Questions people ask
Who owns code written by a Nigerian contractor for my UK company?
The contractor, unless they assign it in writing. UK law (CDPA s.90(3)) and Nigeria's Copyright Act 2022 (s.30(3)) both require assignments in writing.
Does my UK company own work by its employees in Nigeria?
Under CDPA s.11(2) an employer owns copyright in employees' work made in the course of employment, subject to agreement. Nigerian law also applies to work created there, so use a written assignment as well.
Can I assign all future works in a Nigerian contract?
A summary of the Copyright Act 2022 says future works can be assigned, but not all future works. Tie the clause to work under the engagement.
Can Nigerian staff waive moral rights?
A Mondaq note on the Act says moral rights cannot be signed away during the author's life. Contracts usually include a consent not to enforce them as far as the law allows.
Sources
- legislation.gov.uk: Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 11 · accessed Oct 2026
- legislation.gov.uk: Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 90 · accessed Oct 2026
- Mondaq (Esher & Makarios): Assignment of intellectual property rights in Nigeria (24 Sep 2024) · accessed Oct 2026
- Mondaq (OAL): Anita Joseph v Caramel Plug, who owns your photos under Nigeria's Copyright Act (16 Jul 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.