Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria (AMMBAN ) has frowned at none compliance and monitoring of activities of agents deployed on the financial inclusion programme of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) thereby giving room for abuse.
Fasasi Sarafadeen Atanda, chairman, AMMBAN Oyo State chapter, said that it has become a common scenario to see banking agents carrying cash on motor bike and under an umbrella which is against the stipulated guideline issued by CBN on the operational modalities of banking agents.
According to him “agents are expected to have a physical location with signage of their bank provider such physical location could be office space with address or kiosk”.
He further explained that such agents carrying cash with PoS around could defraud customers or collaborate with cybercriminals to steal information on the electronic cards of customers and also exposed them to being robbed by armed robbers.
He said: “For every genuine course, there is the possibility of abuse, especially when regulation is not enforced. Hawking cash is not financial inclusion because CBN regulation is clear about agents having a physical location (not bike), record book, display of logo and name of financial institution etc. How will customers’ dispute transactions be done with an agent on a bike? Are such agents hawking POS not at risk, carrying cash around?”
Atanda blamed the situation on bank providers of the agents for not monitoring them after they were onboarded.
He noted that his association, AMMBAN collaborating with security agents to bring all bank agents to compliance and restore sanity into the agent banking business in Nigeria.
“We cannot sit back watching unguided POS Agents destroy the decade of our collective efforts in deepening financial inclusion in Nigeria”.
