Nigeria’s telecom operators have maintained Unstructured Supplementary Service Data services active as banks make significant strides in repaying their outstanding debts, averting a potential disruption that could have affected millions of users.
The banks, previously at risk of disconnection due to a N160bn debt, have made considerable progress in clearing their liabilities, ensuring uninterrupted access to the USSD platform, which is crucial for customers without internet access.
In a notice dated January 15, 2024, the Nigerian Communications Commission warned that nine banks would be cut off from USSD services by January 27 if they failed to clear debts dating back to 2019.
However, the banks promptly resolved the issue, avoiding any service disruptions.
Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria, Gbenga Adebayo confirmed at a CEO forum in Lagos that the situation had been de-escalated
“The matter has been de-escalated. Money has been paid, and we are making progress thanks to the regulators,” he said.
The dispute began in 2019 when banks started incurring charges for using USSD services provided by telecom companies. However, many banks faced difficulties in settling these charges, leading to the accumulation of debt.
The memo outlines a three-phase payment plan for banks to settle the N250bn debt, with specific deadlines for each phase.
In the first phase, banks are required to pay 60 percent of all outstanding pre-API invoices by January 2, 2025.
The second phase mandates the full settlement of all pre-API invoices by July 2, 2025.
The final phase requires banks to pay 85 percent of post-API invoices by December 31, 2025.