The Nigerian Communications Commission will this week publicly release the names of 18 banks that have failed to settle their outstanding debts for using Mobile Network Operators’ Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) platforms.
These banks collectively owe a total of ₦200 billion, and the telecom regulator is preparing to take action, including suspending USSD services for the defaulters.
Impeccable industry sources told The PUNCH on Monday that only four banks have met the payment requirements outlined in a joint directive issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria and the NCC in December 2023.
The directive stipulated that 60 per cent of pre-API (Application Programming Interfaces) invoices must be settled by January 2, 2025, with payment plans to be agreed upon by the banks and MNOs. However, the other banks have yet to fulfill their payment obligations.
Pre-API invoices are the outstanding payments for USSD services that were incurred before the implementation of Application Programming Interfaces in February 2022.
Before the adoption of APIs, USSD transactions were often managed using older or less standardised methods, which sometimes led to disputes over billing and reconciliation between banks and telcos.
The service suspension, which is expected to take effect in two weeks, could significantly impact Nigerians who rely on USSD services for banking transactions, particularly those without internet access.
In the public statement that the NCC will release, subscribers to these services will be given directives on how to switch to other banks, ensuring they can continue accessing banking services without disruption.
The NCC’s move to expose the defaulters is part of an ongoing effort to resolve the long-standing debt dispute between banks and telecom companies, which has been a point of contention for several years.
Telecom operators have expressed concerns about the impact of the unpaid debt on the sustainability of USSD services and also threatened to withdraw the service.
