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By Chinwendu Obienyi
The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, has revealed that e-Naira users on the NIBSS instant payment platform have recorded over N301 million worth of transactions so far.
This was even as he stated that over 700,000 eNaira transactions worth N8billion have been recorded in the last year since the launch of the eNaira.
Emefiele disclosed this during the CBN’s first anniversary of the e-Naira launch in Lagos on Tuesday.
He noted that since the launch of the e-Naira in 2021, there has been overwhelming interest and encouraging response from Nigerians and other parties across the world.
According to him, 33 banks are fully integrated and live on the platform, N3 billion has been successfully minted by the bank while N2.10 billion has been issued to financial institutions.
He added that about 1.0 million customers have been onboarded, over 3,305 merchants have successfully registered on the eNaira platform across the country including Shoprite, Sahad Stores, A.A. Rano fuelling stations, Fraser Suites, November Cubes, among others while over 700,000 transactions amounting to about N8 billion have been recorded on the platform.
Emefiele said, “To facilitate interoperability, the NIBSS Instant Payment (NIP) solution, which allows eNaira users to seamlessly transact between the eNaira and any bank of their choice across the country, was made available in August 2022. This feature has received wide usage by users recording over N301million worth of transactions so far”.
On the outlook of the e-Naira, the CBN Governor stated that the digital currency will not be a one-off while adding that the apex bank will continue to refine, fine-tune and upgrade it.
“Nigerians should expect to see additional functionalities in the coming months, including: Onboarding of revenue collection agencies to increase and simplify collections, Collaborating with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs through the creation of sector-specific tokens to support the Federal Government’s social programmes and distribution of targeted welfare schemes in a bid to lift millions out of poverty by 2025.
The CBN acknowledges the daunting task ahead. We therefore call on all relevant stakeholders, including the Financial Institutions, NIBSS, FinTech groups, Telcos and merchants to collaborate, innovate, deepen and enhance the value of eNaira to Nigerians and to Nigeria. It is the bank’s hope that the eNaira will drive the digital economy agenda and foster a more prosperous Nigeria”, he said.
