The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday threatened to revoke the operating license of any Money Deposit Bank (MDBs), mobile money operator and super agents that failed to render their daily returns through the Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) to the regulatory body effective from July 10, 2018.
The apex regulatory body in a memo to, money operators and super agents titled ‘Shared Agency Network Expansion Fund Initiative: Regulatory Data Rendition Requirements’, and signed by the Director, Banking and Payments System Department, stated that all banks, including Microfinance banks and Primary Mortgage institutions that appoint or have agents, Mobile Money Operators and Licensed Super Agents are hereby directed to render daily returns, through the NIBSS Plc, to the CBN in the mode and template prescribed by NIBSS. The bank said the transaction data is required daily so as to plot the growth and type of services being offered across the country.
“Pursuant to the decision of the Bankers’ Committee to adopt and implement the shared Agency Network Expansion Fund initiative by the banking industry, aimed at accelerating the bank’s financial programme, the bank hereby issues this regulatory requirement for data rendition for effective monitoring and evaluation purposes, it said.”
CBN, deposit money banks, licensed mobile money operators and super agents had in March, 2018 unveiled a new initiative designed to extend financial services to 60 million financially excluded Nigerians by year 2020.
The initiative involves aggressive rollout of a 500,000 agent-network to offer basic financial services in a bid to give more Nigerians access to financial services.
