Business
CBN gives PoS operators one month to use aggregators

The Central Bank of Nigeria has directed that all Point of Sale operators (POS) must route transactions through licensed payment terminal service aggregators.
A circular posted on the CBN’s website on Thursday stated that the move was aimed at enhancing the tracking and management of electronic transactions in the country.
“As part of efforts to mitigate the concerns regarding channelling all Point of Sale transactions through a single aggregator, the CBN on April 19, 2024, granted a second PTSA licence to Unified Payment Services Limited.
“In furtherance of the above, the CBN hereby directs as follows: 1 Acquirers are henceforth required to route all transactions from PoS terminals at merchant and agent locations, whether on physical or electronic PoS terminals, through any CBN-licensed Payment Terminal Service Aggregator PTSAs are required to send PoS transactions to only Processors certified by the relevant Payment Scheme, nominated by the Acquirer and licensed by CBN,” the apex bank noted.
It noted that the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System Plc was granted a PTSA licence in 2011 to handle the aggregation of PoS transactions.
However, to address concerns about routing all transactions through one aggregator, the CBN granted a second PTSA licence to Unified Payment Services Limited earlier this year in April.
“To achieve the objectiveof tracking electronic transactions in Nigeria, the Central Bank of Nigeria in August 2011, granted a Payment Terminal Service Aggregator licence to Nigeria Interbank Settlement System Plc.
As part of efforts to mitigate the concerns regarding channelling all Point of Sale transactions through a single aggregator, the CBN on April 19, 2024, granted a second PTSA licence to Unified Payment Services Limited.
The CBN has instructed that all acquirers, the institutions responsible for processing payments from PoS terminals, must channel transactions through any of the two licensed aggregators.In addition, licensed processors are required to integrate with both PTSAs to give acquirers the flexibility to choose their preferred service providers.
It noted that payment terminal service providers, responsible for deploying and managing PoS terminals, must ensure their devices and applications are configured to work with any PTSA chosen by the acquirers.
According to the CBN, PTSPs are also required to submit monthly reports to the CBN, detailing the number of merchants and agents they manage, as well as the PTSA services used.
Similarly, the CBN has mandated that each PTSA submit monthly reports of all transactions processed through their platforms.
The apex bank ordered that the reports must be submitted to the director of the Payments System Management Department within seven days after the end of each month.
The CBN urged all PSPs to regularise their operations with the PTSAs within 30 days, warning that non-compliance with the directive would attract appropriate sanctions.
Business
Senate Constitutes Abdullahi Yahaya Tax Harmonisation Committee
Altogether, the four Tax Reform bills were Executive Bills transmitted by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the two chambers of the National Assembly in November last year.

The Senate on Thursday constituted a committee saddled with the responsibility of harmonizing its amendments to the tax reform bills with the House of Representatives version for final transmission to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced this during plenary after the passage of the bills.
Akpabio named senator Abdullahi Yahaya (Kebbi North) as chairman of the committee.
The members of the committee as announced by the Senate President are Senate Minority Leader, Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South), Chief Whip, Tahir Mongumo (APC, Borno North), Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South), Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara), and Solomon Adeola (APC, Ogun West).
Earlier, the remaining two Tax Reform Bills — the Nigeria Tax Bill 2025 and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill, 2025.
This was in addition to passage of the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2025, and the Nigerian Tax Administration Bill, 2025.
Altogether, the four Tax Reform bills were Executive Bills transmitted by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the two chambers of the National Assembly in November last year.
The passage of the bills was sequel to the consideration and adoption of a report of the Senate Committee on Finance presented by its Chairman, Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East).
Business
Meta’s Exit to Throw 20 million Nigerian MSMEs Out of Business
The Global System for Mobile Communications Association reported that Nigerian MSMEs rely heavily on Facebook and Instagram for sales, customer engagement, and brand visibility.

A Digital Marketing Consultant at EssenceMediacom, Olayinka Shobola, believes that a shutdown of Facebook and Instagram operations in Nigeria would deal a serious blow to Nigeria’s digital economy, especially millions of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
The Global System for Mobile Communications Association reported that Nigerian MSMEs rely heavily on Facebook and Instagram for sales, customer engagement, and brand visibility.
“Meta Platforms’ threat to halt operations in Nigeria could devastate 56 percent of the nation’s 39.6 players in the information technology space,” Shobola said, stressing that such an exit would erode tax revenues and force businesses to seek costly alternatives, as a $290 million fine dispute with regulators intensifies.
“Businesses that built their brands on Meta’s platforms would face immediate challenges.
The platforms have become essential tools for business survival and growth in Africa’s largest economy, where SMEs contribute nearly 50 per cent to GDP and represent more than 96 per cent of registered businesses.
“Most likely affected businesses will pivot to platforms like X or TikTok for short-term survival, but long-term, they’ll need to invest in standalone e-commerce or offline channels,” Shobola said.
“Jobs will take a hit; marketers, influencers, and agencies will lose contracts overnight.”
Statista forecasts a $148.2m social media ad market in 2025, with Facebook commanding up to $120m, driven by 38 million ad-reachable users.“My shop practically lives on these platforms, especially Instagram,” Lagos-based baker Fatima Tunde said. “If it’s gone, I’m out of business.”
Business
UAE Invests in $25bn African- Atlantic Gas Pipeline
The gas pipeline will connect Nigeria’s gas network with Morocco’s southern city of Dakhla and then go northward toward Europe.

•Gas pipelines
Morocco’s Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali, said that the UAE is now one of the supporters of the Nigeria to Morocco gas pipeline project, which is estimated to cost $25 billion.
“The project now called the “African-Atlantic Gas Pipeline”, has won the support of IDB, OPEC Fund, EIB and the UAE,” Benali told Nigerian lawmakers, this week.
Benali also said that Morocco has finished all the feasibility and engineering studies needed for the pipeline.
Moroccan industry experts said that the project has already passed the feasibility study and Front End Engineering Design stages.
The gas pipeline will connect Nigeria’s gas network with Morocco’s southern city of Dakhla and then go northward toward Europe.
The line will pass through 15 African countries, boosting trade, development, and access to electricity in the region.
In Phase One, it will link Morocco to gas fields near Senegal and Mauritania, and connect Ghana to the Ivory Coast.
Phase Two will link Nigeria to Ghana, while Phase Three will connect the Ivory Coast to Senegal.
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