Point-of-sale transactions in Nigeria totalled N6.23 trillion between January and July 2024, according to data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System.
This marks a 7.4 per cent decline compared to the N6.79tn recorded in the same period in 2023, reflecting changes in consumer behaviour and spending patterns.
A breakdown of the NIBSS data shows that PoS transactions increased by 5.3 per cent in January to N850.09bn, up from N807.16bn in the corresponding month of 2023.
However, February witnessed a decline to N805.05bn, down 8.9 per cent from N883.45bn in February 2023. March saw a sharp 16.5 per cent drop, with transactions falling to N961.86bn from N1.15tn in March of the previous year.
The downward trend continued in April, with PoS transactions dropping by 22.3 per cent to N811.78bn, compared to N1.04tn in April 2023. However, May reversed the trend, with transactions increasing by 16.1 per cent year-on-year to N868.66bn.
The downturn began in June, with PoS transactions falling by 1.3% to N930.76 billion, from N943.38 billion in June 2023. However, PoS transactions in the country increased by 8.9 percent in July, totaling N1005.42 billion, up from N923.32 billion in July 2023.
E-payment transactions in the country increased by 86.44 percent to N566.39 trillion in the first half of 2024, from N303.60 trillion in the same time previous year. The data showed that July had the greatest transaction value, totaling N89.50 trillion, compared to N47.39 trillion in July 2023.