The Nigerian Communications Commission will this week publicly release the names of 18 banks that have failed to settle their outstanding debts for using Mobile Network Operators’ Unstructured Supplementary Service Data platforms.
These banks collectively owe a total of N200bn, and the telecom regulator is preparing to take action, including suspending USSD services for the defaulters.
Impeccable industry sources told Newsmen on Monday that only four banks have met the payment requirements outlined in a joint directive issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria and the NCC in December 2023.
The directive stipulated that 60 per cent of pre-API (Application Programming Interfaces) invoices must be settled by January 2, 2025, with payment plans to be agreed upon by the banks and MNOs. However, the other banks have yet to fulfill their payment obligations.
Pre-API invoices are the outstanding payments for USSD services that were incurred before the implementation of Application Programming Interfaces in February 2022.
Before the adoption of APIs, USSD transactions were often managed using older or less standardised methods, which sometimes led to disputes over billing and reconciliation between banks and telcos.
The service suspension, which is expected to take effect in two weeks, could significantly impact Nigerians who rely on USSD services for banking transactions, particularly those without internet access.
However, despite this deadline, several banks have failed to meet their payment obligations.
In the public statement that the NCC will release, subscribers to these services will be given directives on how to switch to other banks, ensuring they can continue accessing banking services without disruption.
The NCC’s move to expose the defaulters is part of an ongoing effort to resolve the long-standing debt dispute between banks and telecom companies, which has been a point of contention for several years.
Telecom operators have expressed concerns about the impact of the unpaid debt on the sustainability of USSD services and also threatened to withdraw the service.
Sources said that while banks have been reluctant to prioritise payments, MNOs have refrained from carrying out their threats of suspending the service due to the service’s critical role in the economy.
According to electronic payment statistics from the CBN, USSD transactions reached 252.06 million, valued at N2.19 trillion, between January and June 2024. The figures represent a substantial growth from the 2023 full-year data, where USSD transactions totaled 630.6 million, valued at N4.84 trillion.
This is a significant increase compared to the full-year data for 2023, which showed that N4.84tn was transacted via USSD codes across 630.6 million transactions.
Originating from telcos for airtime and subscription services, USSD technology has been extensively leveraged by the banking sector due to its ability to function without an internet connection.
Last November, the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria, Gbenga Adebayo, said that operators were seeing some progress in the repayment of the debt, with smaller banks beginning to settle their obligations.
