The Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria (AMMBAN) has said that the recently mandated registration of PoS operators in Nigeria is an attempt to tax more Nigerians to generate revenue for the government
The National General Secretary of the group, Oluwasegun Elegbede, stated this in a statement on Tuesday. He discountenanced the Corporate Affairs Commission’s (CAC)’s claim of fighting PoS crime through registration, noting that the types of crimes being committed through PoS cannot be tackled with registration.
While the CAC had recently announced that the PoS operators have until July 7, 2024, to get registered, the AMMBAN Secretary said the CAC is already threatening to deploy the police to go after agents who fail to register by that date.
What AMMBAN is saying
Although the CAC claimed it had an agreement with representatives of the PoS operators before fixing the timeline for the mandatory registration, mobile money agents in the statement said,
“AMMBAN strongly disagrees with the recent directive by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) that all POS agents must register with it, regardless of their status as individuals or non-individuals.
“We believe this directive is unnecessary, contradictory to existing laws, and amounts to a mere revenue generation move to further tax hapless Nigerians.
“We disagree with the CAC’s claim that it wants to fight crimes in the agency banking business space through registration. We believe that the kind of crimes in the space are both human and technical, which CAC registration cannot fight,” the group added.
AMMBAN argued that many of the PoS agents are individuals and registration for them is not mandatory by law.
- The group backed up their claims with section 18(1) of CAMA, which states that “a person may apply to the Commission for the registration of a company” and Section 22(1), which states that “a company shall be deemed to be a separate legal entity from its members.”
- The group noted that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) policy on financial inclusion and development states that “agency banking services shall be provided by agents who are individuals or non-individuals (companies) registered with the CBN.”
“This policy clearly recognizes the distinction between individuals and non-individuals and does not require individuals to register with the CAC,” AMMBAN said.
Allegations against PoS operators
AMMBAN also reacted to a recent allegation of cash hoarding against the PoS operators and banks made by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The body described the allegation as damaging to the reputation of its members who are doing their businesses legitimately.
“Our Association finds it criminal for anyone to buy and sell cash, as our role is to bring succour to the general populace at a convenient cost to serve.
“We urge the EFCC to provide substantial evidence, not generalizing, to support their claims and to avoid making statements that can tarnish the image of hardworking and dedicated agents who have contributed significantly to financial inclusion in Nigeria,” it said.
Backstory
Earlier this month, the CAC announced that PoS agents of major fintechs in Nigeria including OPay, Palmpay, and Moniepoint, among others, had been given a deadline of July 7, 2024, to register their business.
The Registrar-General of the CAC, Hussaini Magaji, who announced this said this was the agreement with the PoS operators after a meeting in Abuja.
According to him, the registrations is also in line with the legal requirements and the directives of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
He added that the action was equally backed by Section 863, Subsection 1 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, CAMA 2020 as well as the 2013 CBN guidelines on agent banking.
He said the registration is aimed at safeguarding the businesses of fintechs and customers, as well as strengthening the economy.
