CBN withdraws licences of eight dormant payment service operators

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has withdrawn the operating licences of seven payment service providers and one payment switching firm.

The firms are Easifuel Limited, Transaction Processing System (TPS), Grand Towers Limited, Paymaster Limited, E-Revenue Gateway Limited, Eartholeum Network Limited and Globasure Limited.

Also, the payment switch licence of 3Line Card Management Limited was revoked.

A gazette signed by the CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, found on the bank’s website, said the decision was taken because the seven firms had stopped the business for which their licences were issued for a period of six months.

They also breached the conditions for their licensing, it added.

They were said to have failed to comply with the obligations imposed upon them by the central bank in accordance with the provisions of Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) Cap B3, Laws of the Federations of Nigeria, 2004.

“Now, therefore, I, Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, in exercise of the powers conferred on the Central Bank of Nigeria under Section 60 and 62 of BOFIA, Cap B3, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, hereby revoke the licences of the payment service providers listed in Schedule 1 and the switch licence of payment service providers listed in Schedule 11 attached hereto. Given under my hand at Abuja this 30th day of November, 2020,” it stated.

The CBN recently announced new capital requirement and licence categorisation for payment service providers.

The CBN, in a circular signed by its Director, Payment System Management Department, Mr Musa Jimoh, had put the new capital requirement for mobile money operations as well as switching and processing companies at N2 billion respectively.

The minimum capital requirement for Payment Solution Services (PSS) was pegged at N250 million while that of super-agents is now N50 million.

Payment Terminal Service Providers (PTSP) and Payment Solutions Service Providers (PSSP) are also required to have the same minimum capital requirement of N100 million.

The CBN had said the move was in line with its commitment to promote a strong and credible payment system.