AGS NEWS – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a directive requiring all Point of Sale (PoS) operators to route transactions through licensed Payment Terminal Service Aggregators (PTSA).

The CBN’s circular, posted on Thursday, explained that this move is intended to improve the tracking and management of electronic transactions in Nigeria.

To address concerns over using a single aggregator, the CBN granted a second PTSA licence to Unified Payment Services Limited on April 19, 2024.

Previously, Nigeria Interbank Settlement System Plc was the sole PTSA, holding the licence since 2011.

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Under the new directive, all acquirers, responsible for processing PoS payments, must route transactions through either of the two licensed PTSAs.

Payment Terminal Service Providers (PTSPs), which deploy and manage PoS terminals, must configure their devices to work with any chosen PTSA. Both PTSAs and PTSPs are required to submit monthly transaction reports to the CBN.

The CBN also urged all payment service providers to regularize their operations with the PTSAs within 30 days, warning of potential sanctions for non-compliance.

The Corporate Affairs Commission had announced that all PoS operators must register with the commission by September 5, 2024.