The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has reported that the nation’s electronic payment transactions (e-transactions) rose to N387 trillion in 2022, representing 42% increase over the N272 trillion recorded in 2021 as more Nigerians embrace cashless payments.
The just released data on the NIBSS Instant Payment (NIP) transactions reflected that the e-payment surged month-on-month during the year, with the highest value recorded in December.
The month is usually characterized by huge spending to celebrate the Christmas and New Year.
The NIBSS’ figures showed that in December, Nigerians spent N42 trillion though electronic channels, representing an all-time high monthly spend on the NIBSS electronic payment platform.
The data further indicated that the volume of transactions processed by NIBSS for the year also increased from 3.4 billion in 2021 to 5.1 billion in 2022, indicating a 50% surge year-on-year.
Analysts believe that as the cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) continues to gain traction with more Nigerians adopting the PoS, and USSD for transactions and money transfers, the revised policy limiting cash withdrawals by individuals and corporate organizations will further drive a surge in electronic transactions across the country.
Specifically, the policy, which was announced after the redesigning of N1,000, N500, and N200 notes was announced by the monetary authorities, requires that effective from January 9, 2023, cash withdrawal by an individual will be limited to N500,000 a week, while corporate organizations have a N5 million withdrawal limit in a week.
The apex bank is implementing the cash withdrawal limits as part of its efforts to effectively manage money in circulation as its deadline to end the circulation of old banknotes effective from January 31 draws closer by the day.
