The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed all financial institutions, acquirers, and payment service providers to implement mandatory dual connectivity for Point of Sale (PoS) transactions within one month. This order, announced in a circular signed by Rakiya Yusuf, Director of the Payments System Supervision Department, aims to mitigate frequent PoS downtimes caused by reliance on a single transaction channel.
Under the new directive, all acquirers and payment terminal service providers must maintain active connections with both the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and Unified Payment Services Limited (UPSL). This dual connectivity is intended to reduce dependence on any single aggregator and stabilize the country’s payment infrastructure.
To ensure compliance, the CBN has mandated periodic redundancy and failover tests. NIBSS and UPSL are required to collaborate with regulated institutions to confirm that systems can support uninterrupted service. Any downtime must be promptly reported to the CBN, including a detailed incident report within 24 hours.
