*.Telecom Tax Also Coming
Customers of deposit money banks that have been complaining of multiple charges by the institutions have one addition to their burdens, the Cyber Security levy.
This followed a circular from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directing all DMBs in the country to start charging 0.5% cybersecurity levy on transactions.
This was contained in a circular dated May 6, 2024 by the apex bank to all commercial, merchant, non-interest and payment service banks as well as mobile money operators and payment service providers.
Already, there are speculations that Nigeria may reinstate a previously suspended telecom tax and other fiscal measures so as secure favour from the World Bank for a new $750 million loan.
This is according to the Stakeholder Engagement Plan for Nigeria – Accelerating Resource Mobilisation Reforms (ARMOR) P-For-R (P177308) program dated March 2024, between Nigeria and the World Bank.
However, according to the CBN’s circular, the enabling Act as amended is already in place to give authority for the collection of the level, effective, two weeks from the date on the circula.
”Following the enactment of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) (amendment) Act 2024 and pursuant to the provision of Section 44 (2) (a) of the Act, ‘a levy of 0.5% (0.005) equivalent to a half percent of all electronic transactions value by the business specified in the Second Schedule of the Act’, is to be remitted to the National Cybersecurity Fund (NCF), which shall be administered by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA),” the circular partly read.
The apex bank said that the implementation of the levy would start two weeks from the date of the circular.
“The levy shall be applied at the point of electronic transfer origination, then deducted and remitted by the financial institution. The deducted amount shall be reflected in the customer’s account with the narration, ‘Cybersecurity Levy’.
“Deductions shall commence within two weeks from the date of this circular for all financial institutions and the monthly remittance of the levies collected in bulk to the NCF account domiciled at the CBN by the fifth business day of every subsequent month,” the circular added.
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Exempted from the levy include loan disbursements and repayments, salary payments, intra-account transfers within the same bank or between different banks for the same customer, intra-bank transfers between customers of the same bank.
Also exempted from the levy were inter-branch transfers within a bank, cheque clearing and settlements, Letters of Credits, Banks’ recapitalisation-related funding only bulk funds movement from collection accounts, savings and deposits including transactions involving long-term investments, among others.”
The apex bank recently stopped fintechs firms like Opay and Palmpay from onboarding new customers and directed banks to deduct 0.375 per cent stamp duty charge on all mortgaged-backed loans and bonds.
Some analysts say the multiplication of levies would work against the financial inclusion of CBN, a development that would impact negatively on the intermediation roles of banks.
Ultimately, business activities will reduce as customers’ apathy towards also expensive loan’s will further reduce and subsequently the Net Interest Margins (NIM) of the Banks would shrink.
