An ultimatum has been issued by the Nigerian Government, through the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), requiring Point of Sales (PoS) companies to register their agents, merchants, and individuals with the commission within two months to comply with legal regulations and directives from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Following a meeting between Fintechs and the Registrar-General of CAC, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji in Abuja, this directive was established.
It is estimated that there are more than 1.9 million PoS terminals currently in use by merchants and individuals across the country.
During the meeting, the CAC chief emphasized that this measure is aimed at protecting the businesses of Fintech customers and enhancing the economy. He underlined that this initiative is supported by Section 863, Subsection 1 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, CAMA 2020, as well as the 2013 CBN guidelines on agent banking.
The deadline for this registration, which is set for July 7, 2024, is not intended to target any specific groups or individuals but is genuinely focused on business protection.
A joint statement by the Corporate Affairs Commission and fintech companies, known as PoS operators, highlighted the agreement to comply with the legal requirements and CBN directives by completing the registration within two months.
This new requirement comes amidst increasing fraud cases involving POS terminals and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s plans to prohibit trading in cryptocurrency or any virtual currency. In 2023, POS terminals were involved in 26.37% of fraud incidents, according to a report by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc.
Last week, major fintech firms like Kuda, Opay, PalmPay, and Moniepoint were instructed by the CBN to cease onboarding new customers and advise existing customers against cryptocurrency or virtual currency trading on their platforms, with the threat of blocking accounts engaging in such activities.