NCC orders telcos to disconnect 9 banks from USSD over debts

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has ordered telecommunication companies to disconnect the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) codes assigned to nine banks due to unpaid debts.

This was made known in a public notice signed by NCC’s Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka, on Wednesday, January 15, 2025.

Muoka said the affected banks must settle their outstanding debts by January 27, 2025, or risk losing access to their USSD codes.

The banks are Fidelity Bank (770), First City Monument Bank (329), Jaiz Bank (773), Polaris Bank Limited (833), Sterling Bank Limited (832), United Bank for Africa (919), Unity Bank (7799), Wema Bank (945), and Zenith Bank (966).

The NCC spokesman noted that the codes, which are essential for enabling mobile banking services, could be reassigned to other applicants if the debts remained unresolved.

He revealed that on Tuesday, January 14, nine out of 18 banks had not complied with regulatory directives.

“While other banks have cleared their debts, the total amount initially owed by the financial institutions was reported to exceed N200 billion,” Muoka stated.

According to him, some of the unpaid invoices have remained unpaid since 2020, indicating a prolonged financial dispute between the banks and telecom operators.

Muoka stated: “By the information made available to the commission as of the close of business on January 14, 2025, out of a total of 18 financial institutions, nine institutions failed to comply significantly with the directives in the Second Joint Circular of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the commission.

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“The circular is dated December 20, 2024, and is for the settlement of outstanding invoices due to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), some since 2020.”

The NCC spokesperson noted that the banks’ failure to comply with the CBN-NCC joint circular also meant that they were unable to meet the good standing requirements for the renewal of the USSD codes assigned to them by the commission.

“In fulfilment of its consumer protection mandate, the commission wishes to inform consumers that they may be unable to access the USSD platform of the affected financial institutions from January 27, 2025,” Muoka said.

Muoka emphasised that the banks had been duly notified of the need for immediate compliance and warned that consumers may face service disruptions if the issues remained unresolved.

The latest development highlights ongoing tensions between telecommunications companies and financial institutions over unpaid USSD-related debts, a challenge that has persisted for years.

Meanwhile, data from the CBN revealed that 252.06 million transactions worth N2.19 trillion were conducted via USSD between January and June 2024.

This represents a significant growth compared to 2023 when 630.6 million transactions valued at N4.84 trillion were completed using USSD codes.

The Star