The Association of Point of Sale (POS) Service Providers has warned that banking operations across Nigeria could face significant disruption if regulators fail to address what it describes as an exclusivity arrangement involving [Central Bank of Nigeria CBN, Verve International and Interswitch Limited. The group said the alleged practice could undermine competition within the country’s electronic payments ecosystem.
In a statement signed by Communications Consultant Yomi Idowu, the association said it had formally petitioned regulators, arguing that the actions of Verve and Interswitch contravene existing CBN guidelines and provisions of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018. The operators contend that the arrangement limits fair market access for payment service providers.
The association, which represents a coalition of licensed payment acquirers, processors and switches, warned that it may suspend the acceptance, processing and switching of Verve card transactions if immediate regulatory intervention is not forthcoming. Such a move could have significant implications for card payment volumes and digital transaction flows across the banking sector.
Meanwhile,The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has extended the enforcement deadline for its mandatory Point of Sale (PoS) terminal geo-fencing framework to 1 August, giving payment service providers additional time to comply with the regulatory requirements. The policy, first issued in August 2025, requires all PoS terminals in Nigeria to be geo-tagged within 60 days as part of efforts to curb fraud and strengthen oversight of digital payments under ISO 20022 standards. It applies to key operators across the payments ecosystem, including banks, mobile money operators, super agents, and switching companies, with terminals restricted to approved merchant locations under the geo-fencing rule.
