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CBN to Revoke Licenses of 15 Mobile Money Firms

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Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) may revoke the licences of at least 15 struggling mobile money operators under new minimum finance rules.

 

New Telegraph tipped the majority of the 21 companies operating services in the country to fall foul of tough new cash requirements.

 

CBN rules, effective from the end of December 2017, stated operators must have NGN1 billion ($2.8 million) in reserves.

 

This sum is set to rise to NGN2 billion on 1 July, 2018 – a level the newspaper said many providers would fail to reach.

 

Isaac Okorafor, CBN corporate communications director said he didn’t expect any “serious operator” to lose its licence when the July requirement takes effect.

 

Though Okorafor was silent on the number of operators that may be affected at deadline with full implementation of the new N2 billion recapitalisation policy, New Telegraph gathered that more than 15 of the licensed mobile operators, which lack the financial muscles to recapitalise as required by the apex bank come July, may have their licences withdrawn.

 

Mobile money is an aspect of financial transactions where financial values are transferred from one person to another using Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) platform on mobile networks.

 

The electronic fund transfer platform was introduced to complement the entire spectrum of cashless economy policy effectively introduced by the apex bank in January 1, 2012.

 

Till date, some 21 mobile money licences have been issued by the CBN with only a few of them operating effectively, including United Bank for Africa/ AfriPay (U-Mobile); Zenith Bank (EazyMoney); GTBank (GTMobileMoney); FirstBank/Pridar – (First- Monie); Stanbic IBTC (*909# Mobile Money) and Ecobank (Ecobank Mobile Money) and others.

 

It was, however, gathered that most of the mobile money operators not backed by any bank have had their operations crumbled due to what industry pundits refer to as “paucity of funds to run effective operations to compete in the financial services market” and may find it difficult to meet the deadline “without some re-alignment.”

 

 

Operators within this fold, as gathered, include Parkway Projects (ReadyCash); eTranzact (PocketMoni); PagaTech (Paga); Fortis MFB (Fortis Mobile Money); Monitize (Monitize mobile money); FETS (My Wallet); Eartholeum (QikQik); Teasy Mobile (Teasy Mobile); Mkudi (Mimo); PayCom (Payment Irrespective of Distance or Obstacles – PIDO); VTNetwork (Virtual Terminal Network – VTN) and Cellulant (CeLLulant) among others. Despite having 21 mobile money operators licensed by the CBN in the circulation, the volume of transaction on the payment platforms is still grossly low, according to data obtained on NIBSS official website.

 

New Telegraph gathered that on the basis of the licensees’ inactivity occasioned by sheer paucity of funds to effectively roll out, the CBN has introduced the recapitalisation of mobile money operations in order to have strong players with adequate financial chess power to advance mobile financial services in the country.

 

Speaking on the misunderstanding of their role and conditions of licensing, Shonubi, in an interview with New Telegraph, said, “Most mobile money licensees have left what should be their niche markets to compete with big financial institutions such as banks. Until, they refocus their attention towards playing in micro transactions area rather competing with the banks’ market, they will continue to have problem.”

 

According to him, mobile money operators, looking for where to make money from, decided to run after bank customers who also have mobile phones and were determined to take some of them off the hook of the banks, which is a misplaced priority.

 

Mr. Ike Nnamani, president, Medallion Communications, blamed the poor performance of mobile money operators on lack of adequate funding, lack of technical skills, poor shared infrastructure arrangement as well as lack of focus as to what their mandate should be.

 

 

 

 

 


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E-Financial

Lagos State Appoints MoneyMaster as Payment Partner for “Ounje Eko” Programme

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“Ounje Eko”, the food price discount initiative of the Lagos State Government, has appointed leading payment service bank, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank Limited (MMPSB), as its collaborator in the bid to ensure ease of payments at the market.

MoneyMaster is one of the Central Bank of Nigeria-licensed Payment Service Banks (PSBs) to promote financial inclusion across Nigeria.

Under the partnership, MMPSB will apply its cutting-edge payment solution to engender easy payment and reconciliation in order to make   the experiences of Lagosians who will be getting their food supplies from the markets pleasurable. Its payment solution is also all-encompassing and ensures real time value to payment destinations.

The mobile bank was appointed as the collection and payment partner for “Ounje Eko” Food Markets programme which is a government initiative serving the five divisions of Lagos State. Consequent on this, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank will collect payments in 57 LCDAs in the state.

The partnership gives credence to the quality of payment solutions that MoneyMaster is reputed for in its services to its growing business clientele in private and public sectors.

 


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E-Financial

CBN, EFCC Probe Banks, Firms over Alleged Forex Racketeering

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Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is investigating irregular foreign exchange transactions and forward contracts valued at approximately $2.4 billion.

CBN, EFCC Probe Banks, Firms over Alleged Forex Racketeering

The  inquiry follows an extensive audit by Deloitte, which scrutinized $7 billion in dollar debts accumulated under the bank’s previous leadership.

In the aftermath of the 294th Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja, Yemi Cardoso, governor of CBN,  disclosed to journalists that the investigation, supported by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, among other security bodies, aims to clarify the legitimacy of these FX allocations identified as problematic by the audit.

“It was determined that a number of these transactions did not qualify…they were outright illegal. The law enforcement agencies are now looking into those transactions that as far as we are concerned, are not valid to be paid,” Cardoso detailed, emphasizing the unlawful nature of these forex deals.

The crux of the investigation lies in the audit findings that a significant portion of the scrutinized transactions lacked proper documentation and, in many instances, were deemed outright illegal.

However, the unfolding investigation has raised concerns within the organized private sector, with some entities contemplating legal action against commercial banks for unresolved forex bids.

Despite these tensions, Governor Cardoso reassures that the foreign exchange market remains open and transparent, inviting stakeholders to address their forex needs through the official channels.

Furthermore, Cardoso clarified the distribution of fertilizers to farmers as a one-off measure and not indicative of a shift back to direct interventions by the CBN, underscoring a commitment to strategic, regulatory governance rather than direct market involvement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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CBN Urges Banks to Expedite Action on Recapitalisation

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Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed deposit money banks in the country to expedite action to increase their capital base from the current ₦25bn.

CBN Urges Banks to Expedite Action on Recapitalisation

Olayemi Cardoso, governor of CBN

Olayemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, stated this during the apex bank’s 294th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Tuesday in Abuja, when the MPC hiked the interest rate by 22.75% to 24.75%.

The apex bank chief said the MPC examined developments in the banking sector and expressed satisfaction that the industry remained stable. The committee, however, said to guard against risk, commercial banks in the country should accelerate their recapitalisation efforts.

Cardoso said, “The MPC also reviewed developments in the banking system and noted that the industry remains safe, sound, and stable. The committee thus called on the bank to sustain its surveillance and ensure compliance of banks with existing regulatory and macro-potential guidelines.

“The MPC also enjoined the banks to expedite actions on the recapitalisation of banks to strengthen the system against potential risks in an increasingly globalised world.”

 

 

 

 


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