Banks, Telcos In Hot Seat: FG Demands N250bn USSD Debt Settlement In A Certain Date

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) have issued a final directive to Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to resolve the prolonged N250 billion Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) debt dispute.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

As regulatory bodies of the Federal Government, the CBN and NCC outlined the directive in a joint circular dated December 20, 2024. The document, signed by Oladimeji Taiwo, acting Director of Payments System Management at the CBN, and Chizua Whyte, Head of Legal and Regulatory Services at the NCC, was exclusively obtained by our correspondent. It includes a structured repayment plan and updated operational guidelines for USSD services.

According to the directive, 60% of all debts incurred before the implementation of Application Programming Interfaces in February 2022 must be paid as a full and final settlement. Banks and telecom operators are required to finalize payment agreements—whether as lump sums or instalments—by January 2, 2025, with complete settlement due by July 2, 2025.

For debts incurred after February 2022, the CBN and NCC have mandated that 85% of outstanding invoices be paid by December 31, 2024, and future invoices settled at the same 85% rate within one month of issuance.

The directive also demands the discontinuation of all ongoing litigation related to the USSD debt and warns that non-compliance will result in stringent penalties.

“Given the outlined conditions, the CBN and NCC direct all DMBs and MNOs to strictly adhere to the payment terms to ensure a final resolution of this issue. Non-compliance will attract sanctions,” the circular stated.

This development follows increasing pressure from telecom operators, who had previously urged the government to provide a clear framework for addressing the debt, which has strained relationships between the banking and telecom sectors.