In the first seven months of 2022, bank clients may have spent N92.2 billion using point-of-sale terminals.
PoS transactions totaled N4.61 trillion in the first seven months of the year, according to data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System. On PoS, a fee of roughly N100 is frequently assessed for withdrawals or transactions between N1,000 and N5000. The overall cost incurred for PoS transactions throughout the time period now equals around N92.2 billion.
PoS terminals are used as payment gateways, allowing users to use their cards to pay for goods and bills in addition to making withdrawals. The average cost for these transactions is N1,000 for the consumer.
Victor Olojo, the national president of the Association of Mobile Money Agents in Nigeria, verified that the operators were charging fees.
As of January 2022, the country had roughly 955,234 PoS terminals deployed, according to data from the NIBSS. PoS terminals were introduced to help the country transition to a cashless economy and facilitate payment in rural areas.
Given that mobile money has evolved into the most accessible mode of payment, the expansion of PoS terminals and mobile money is demonstrated.
For every 100,000 Nigerians, there are four bank branches, 17 ATMs, and 147 POS terminals, according to a McKinsey analysis.
Agents are making a life off of this, a lot of things are happening, Olojo continued. The Central Bank’s plan, which includes agents who have built homes and are earning money as agents, is a smart one.
As a matter of fact, many agents would not seek white collar jobs because they are earning a lot from POS business. Many are now landlords, many own properties, and many are married. We have agents who are doing very well and earning way better than bank managers.
He noted that the operational environment and the cost of service may need to be taken into consideration while reviewing the transactional costs.
“The transaction cost should grow,” he stated, “there is something called cost to service, there is a challenge when it comes to serving consumers, location, getting the funds available, security, threat to life, robbery, and charges of transfer, stamp duty.
