The establishment of the Corporate Affairs Commission as an autonomous body was as a result of the perceived inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the erstwhile Company Registry, a department within the Federal Ministry of Commerce and Tourism which was then responsible for the registration and administration of the repealed Companies Act of 1968.

The functions of the Commission, as set out in section 7 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, includes the following: To administer the Act, including the regulation and supervision of the formation, incorporation, management and winding up of companies; To establish and maintain companies registry and offices in all the states of the Federation suitably and adequately equipped to discharge its functions under the Act or any law in respect of which it is charged with responsibility; to arrange and conduct an investigation into the affairs of any company where the interests of the shareholders and the public so demand; to undertake such other activities as are necessary or expedient for giving full effect to the provisions of the Act.