CBN To Jail Naira Notes Sellers, PoS Operators, Lists Phone Numbers, Email for Nigerians To Report
- The Central bank of Nigeria has expressed its intention to punish PoS operators that charge high withdrawal fees
- The CBN is also targeting Naira note dealers as it ramps up its efforts to alleviate Nigerians' sufferings
- The CBN has also made phone numbers and email addresses available for Nigerians to report offenders
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The Central Bank of Nigeria has threatened to arrest Point of Sale entrepreneurs and naira note sellers who exploit members of the public.
The Director, Governor’s Department, CBN, Joseph Omayuku stated these while briefing journalists in Yenagoa, Bayelsa
According to Omayuku those unregistered payment agents as fifth columnists whose actions constituted economic sabotage, and said it will conduct sting operations around the country this week to arrest and punish them.
Source: Facebook
Punch reports that Omayuku explained that the sharp practices were discovered after reviews of the implementation of the policy.
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He further stated that these PoS providers offer naira notes for naira notes to customers in the middle of certain business operators, such as fuel stations and supermarkets, rejecting online payments.
His words;
"Further examinations have suggested that it does look as though there are fifth columnists functioning in this system, and these fifth columnists, as it appears, are anybody who has PoS access. Several of them have now resorted to the unpleasant practice of acting as payment agents.
"So you find out that even next to fuel stations, their agents or PoS operators next to them are there who you will go to, to sell money to you and you take that money to go and purchase petrol; and not only petrol stations, in short, everywhere.
"From this week, there will be major sting operations over the nation. Because this is the motivation (selling naira). The motivation is that they can sell our currency to us, which is illegal. You cannot possibly be selling naira to us."
CBN to arrest PoS operators for charges
Omayuku went on to say that the CBN frowned on the high commissions that payment agents take from clients in excess of the permitted prices, calling their conduct dishonest.
According to him, the operating structure for payment agents is that they collect a fee on transactions, which is limited to N100 or N200 for transactions up to N10,000. However, we have heard of people getting charged N1,000 or N2,000. This is unquestionably bogus; it is a rogue business.
He added:
“The management of the CBN and the leaders of the country do not subscribe to any logic that will allow people to operate like this. So, the security agencies will be very active this week, going forward.”
CBN wants Nigerians to report
Speaking further Omayuku warned those engaged in illegal practices to turn a new leaf and advised members of the public to report perpetrators by contacting the CBN Contact Centre on 07002255226; Telephone Ext: 711025 – 7; contactcbn@cbn.gov.ng and its social media handles.
CBN plans to pump new naira notes into circulation
Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Nigeria is preparing to make N500 billion of new naira notes available to banks and, more crucially, Nigerians.
Due to the lack of new naira notes, Nigerians and PoS operators have been forced to continue trading with the old currency.
It is expected that the apex plan to pump more cash would push the value of new naira notes in circulation closer to N1 trillion.
Source: Legit.ng
