by Major mobile telecommunications companies in Nigeria have secured an approval from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to disconnect Deposit Money Banks (DMBs).
The approval to disconnect was granted as DMB’s have refused to pay the debt owed to the MNO’s to use the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) services, which now amounts to over N120 billion.
The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators(ALTON), in a statement on Friday, said they would be disconnecting the banks at any moment if they fail to pay.
ALTON chairman, Engineer Gbenga Adebayo, said despite the concerted efforts of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, the NCC and the Central Bank of Nigeria, the banks have yet to pay up.
Engineer Adebayo added: “MNOs have invested billions of naira in expanding their systems to accommodate the USSD needs of DMBs over the years.
“Unfortunately, MNOs are not getting paid for their services, and the debt that stood at N42 billion in 2021 has now risen to over N120 billion.”
The Federal government had to wade into the matter so the MNO’s would not proceed with the disconnection plan as the government claimed it would disrupt the Digital and Financial policy it was aiming to put in place.
Source: radionigeria
