NCC confirms Airtel as sole bidder for new 5G licence

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has confirmed that Airtel Nigeria is the sole telecom operator willing to bid for the 3.5GHz spectrum licence for 5G deployment.

In preparation for the auction scheduled for December 19, the telco was the first to pay the $27.36 million intention to bid deposit.

According to a statement from the NCC that newsmen were able to obtain, only two telecom companies had shown interest in the auction as of the deadline, which fell on Monday, December 5, 2022. Airtel and Standard Network & Connections Limited are the telcos.

CBN warns banks, payment service providers others against discrimination of payment cards

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has advised against discriminating between payment cards issued by Nigerian banks. This warning has been issued to banks, switching companies, and other relevant parties in the Nigerian payment system.

A circular sent to all banks, switching companies, and other organisations contains the warning and is signed by Musa Jimoh, Director of the CBN’s Payments System Management Department.

The apex bank’s new policy on over-the-counter cash withdrawal limits for individuals and businesses, as well as withdrawal limits for Automatic Teller Machines (ATM) and Point of Sale, come at a time when it has stepped up its efforts to create a cashless economy (POS)

Jimoh said that the circular titled, ‘Re: Interoperability and Interconnectivity of the Payments System Infrastructure in Nigeria’, is a reminder of some of the provisions of its Guidelines on operations of electronic payment channels in Nigeria (June 2020).

POS terminals must accept all cards

Jimoh noted that the merchant acquirers shall ensure that the purchased and deployed POS terminals shall accept all cards.

The circular reads, ‘’The Central Bank of Nigeria has observed that a number of the acceptance devices deployed by banks discriminate between payment cards. For the avoidance of doubt, all certified payment acceptance devices deployed in Nigeria are required to accept ALL transactions arising from any card issued by any Nigerian bank.

‘’The circular serves as a reminder of the following provisions of the Guidelines on operations of electronic payment channels in Nigeria (June 2020);