Skip to main content

Dipo Fatokun: CBN directs banks to resolve USSD disputes in 3 days

Dipo Fatokun

Mr Dipo Fatokun, CBN’s Director, Banking and Payment Systems Department, gave the directive at the ‘Meet The Executive’ forum organised by Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) in Lagos.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Saturday directed all commercial banks to resolve disputes arising from use of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) channel within three days.

Mr Dipo Fatokun, CBN’s Director, Banking and Payment Systems Department, gave the directive at the ‘Meet The Executive’ forum organised by Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) in Lagos.

Fatokun, represented by Assistant Director, Banking and Payments System Department, Mr Taiwo Oladimeji, said such resolution would help build more confidence in the payment system and bring more people into the financial services net.

The director said some provisions of the regulatory framework for USSD were meant to make the channel more effective.

He listed some of the provisions as authentication measures for transactions, International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), Date of SIM Swap, Date of Device change, International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI).

The director said the maximum USSD transaction limit remained N100, 000 per customer daily, and that any amount above that required customers to execute indemnity at the bank.

USSD transactions above N20,000 require two-factor authentication (2FA).

“No USSD financial service should be activated for customers unless the deactivation mechanism is put in place with effect from October, 2018.

“In addition, the CBN is currently working to properly structure and formalise the sandbox arrangement in Nigeria by collaborating with some infrastructure providers like the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS) to interact with FinTechs,” he said.

Fatokun, however, said the financial system was undergoing transformation through technology, and that it was not only peculiar to the financial services sector but all sectors of human endeavours.

We are seeing new operators with technology savvy, more efficient models, and collaborations among new entrants as well as established participants in payments systems in ways that exhibit regulatory challenges.

“To meet up with the challenges, some countries have adopted regulatory sandbox approach which is not totally novel to the CBN.

“We are, however, working to properly structure and formalise the sandbox arrangement in Nigeria by collaborating with some infrastructure providers to interact with FinTechs,” he said.

Fatokun further said a functional National Payments System (NPS) was crucial to the financial sector development as it would increase confidence in the financial sector by ensuring a credible, reliable and efficient payment system.

He observed that in recent years, the Nigerian payment landscape had experienced a lot of innovation, bursting with enterprise and reaching the unbanked and undeserved.

ridoola.blogspot.com.ng

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Okpebholo suspends A-G & LG Chair under 3 months over finance dealings

The Edo Government has announced the suspension of Samson Osagie , its Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, and Damian Lawani , chairman of the Local Government Service Commission. Mr Musa Ikhilor , Secretary to the State Government (SSG) announced the suspension in a statement in Benin on Thursday morning. ALSO READ: Kano Govt suspend 2 school principals for alleged absenteeism, negligence Ikhilor said the two-state top officials were suspended over allegations of “grave official and financial interactions”. Okpebholo suspends Edo Attorney-General and LG Service Commission Chairman According to him, the suspension, which takes immediate effect, is pending the conclusion of an investigation into the allegations. The SSG said; It is hereby announced for the information of the general public that Gov. Monday Okpebholo has approved the suspension from office of the Chairman of Edo Local Government Service Commission, Damian Lawani and Commissioner for Justice, Samson Os...

Family Homes Funds, TETFund & Private Investors Lead National PPP Drive for Renewed Hope Student Housing Projects

The Renewed Hope Student Housing Project is a Public Private Partnership initiative of His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR that is set to improve the living standards and revitalize infrastructure across Tertiary Institutions in the country with a plan to deliver 38,400 world class student hostel bed spaces across a total of 24 locations: 12 Universities, 6 Polytechnics & 6 Colleges of Education. The Renewed Hope Student Hostel Project in each of the 24 locations will boast 1,600 bed spaces, 400 ensuite rooms with study table and chairs, 4 reading rooms, common room, cafeteria & restaurants, laundromat, grocery shops, salons, public toilets etc.  Family Homes Funds Limited (FHFL), in partnership with the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) and Africa Plus Partners Nigeria Limited is set to deliver on Mr. President’s promise to transform student accommodation nationwide through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Renewed Hope Stude...

NYSC Mobilisation & Academic Standards – Raising quality or adding pressure on students?

On September 29, 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved a reform linking the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) mobilisation process to the National Policy for the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD). By invoking Sections 2(4)(4) and 16(1)(C) of the NYSC Act, Tinubu stated that no graduate, whether from a Nigerian or foreign institution, will be mobilised for or exempted from NYSC without proof of compliance with the NERD policy. In a common man's understanding, the Federal Government has announced that Nigerian students must now submit their final-year projects or thesis before they can be mobilised for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). This policy aims to improve academic standards, ensuring that no student skips essential academic requirements before entering the NYSC scheme . On the surface, this sounds like a laudable idea, but a deeper look reveals a different reality. In many universities, students are allowed to graduate and mobilised for NYSC  ...