The Nigeria Interbank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS) has ordered Nigerian banks to disengage all non-deposit-taking financial entities from their Nigerian Interbank Payment (NIP) outward fund transfer channels.
According to Nairametrics, the institutions defined in the directive as “Switching Companies (Switches), Payment Solution Service Providers (PSSPs), and Super Agents (SA),” are integral to the nation’s digital financial ecosystem, offering a range of transaction services across various platforms, including USSD, mobile banking applications, Point of Sale (POS) systems, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), and online banking services.
An excerpt of the circular from NIBSS states that:
“Listing non-deposit taking financial institutions such as Switching Companies (Switches), Payment Solution Service Providers (PSSPs) and Super Agents (SA) as beneficiary institutions on your NIP funds transfer channels contravenes the CBN Guidelines on Electronic Payment of Salaries, Pensions, Suppliers and Taxes in Nigeria dated February 2014.”
Further emphasizing the extent of the directive, the circular clarifies: “Switches, PSSPs and SAs may process outward transfers as inflows to Banks but are not to receive inflows as their licenses do not permit them to hold customers’ funds.”
