N150 Billion USSD Debt: CBN, NCC Settle Dispute Between Access Bank, Zenith, MTN, Airtel, Others
- The longstanding dispute between the telecom operators and banks has been settled
- The Vice Chairman of NCC, Umar Danbatta, revealed that the CBN waded into the dispute recently
- He said the N150 billion USSD debt accrued as banks as a result of a misunderstanding between the banks and the telcos
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said they have resolved the longstanding dispute between telecom operators and commercial banks in Nigeria.
The N150 billion debt resulted from the use of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) by bank customers.
Source: UGC
NCC speaks on how dispute was resolved
Vice Chairman and CEO of NCC, Umar Danbatta, told telecom executives and regulators at a recent forum in Lagos that the CBN has ended the debacle with telecom operators.
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The forum was organized by the Association of Telecom Companies of Nigeria (ALTON).
According to Danbatta, there was a meeting with the bank CEOs and the telecom operators where CBN acknowledged the considerable debt by the banks and the need to pay up. In contrast, charges for services would be paid for henceforth.
The Nation reports that the NCC boss said customers should not be billed but, rather, should be corporate billing, stating that he hoped the agreement reached by the parties would be effected to the last.
Telecoms sector contributes 19.5% to GDP
Danbatta said the IT sector’s contribution to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated at 19.5%, while the telecom sector is about 16%.
He revealed that the high percentage contribution of the IT sector to the GDP makes it second to the agricultural industry.
Per the NCC Boss, the Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, has acknowledged the high cost of doing business in the telecom sector and said that big operators have posted losses while others are stifled.
CBN wades into N120 billion USSD debt dispute between telcos And banks as NCC gives nod to disconnection
Legit.ng reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria has waded into the protracted dispute between telecommunication companies and Nigerian banks over the N120 billion debt the banks owe to telcos.
The telcos say that the banks are indebted to them to N120 billion for service provided through Unstructured Supplementary Service (USSD).
The heated dispute led to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) giving the telecom companies the go-ahead to disconnect the banks.
Source: Legit.ng
