Many Nigerians, including traders, have been experiencing untold hardship since Monday, January 30, 2023, a deadline the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) initially set for the phasing out of old naira notes.
The development has left many businesses and households struggling, as people were unable to get cash at Deposit Money Banks (DMBs), Point of Sale (POS) points, and Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) due to the cash crunch.
While people now solely depend on digital banking to make transactions, BizWatch Nigeria gathered that their experience has not been awesome due to failed, and delayed payments.
Lamenting how digital banking has left him disappointing since the cash crunch began, Godspower Chikodi, a Uber driver, who spoke to this writer, stated: “It would surprise you that three persons I serviced with my car were yet to pay me despite the promise they made. I was left with no other choice than to accept the transfer when they wanted to pay me, because of course, there was no cash, but to my greatest shock, I never got the money from these people. When I called them, they kept on ignoring me, and I’m frustrated.”
Also expressing frustration, an Air Condition installer, who only identified himself as Akeeb, stated: “I spent two days working in a building. The owner paid me and showed me proof of the transaction, but I’m yet to get the credit and it’s up to a week now.”
‘FinTechs don’t have the capacity to serve Nigerians’
As the cash crunch continues to bite harder, financial experts expressed concern that financial technology firms (FinTechs) don’t have the capacity and enough infrastructure to service members of the public.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), in a statement cited by this writer, said the cash-in-hand challenge has revealed the weakness in the country’s alternative financial payment system.
ICAN, therefore, advised banks, fintechs, and telecommunication companies to ramp up investment in their alternative and digital payment platforms.
“The current cash-in-hand challenge has revealed the weaknesses in our alternative financial payment solutions. Accordingly, we encourage the deposit money banks, telecommunication and fintech companies to ramp up investments in their systems and processes towards improving the quality of their services in the Nigerian economy in the shortest possible time,” the statement read.
Echoing ICAN’s opinion, a financial analyst, who preferred not to be mentioned in this report, explained that banks providing digital services were overwhelmed with the number of transaction volumes they have to process at a time.
“This was supposed to be an opportunity for them (digital banks) to rise to the occasion, and drive Nigeria’s cashless policy drive, but they failed considering the unsuccessful transactions their customers are experiencing, and the unreliable impression they’ve earned with their services,” she explained.
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