A financial technology company, Xpress Payment Solutions Limited, has said that the usage of the cashless society policy will contribute significantly to the growth of the Nigerian economy.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the company, Oluwadare Owolabi, told our correspondent over the weekend, that this was possible, if political and socioeconomic factors were constant.
He added that for the Central Bank of Nigeria’s cashless policy to be successful, Agent Banking Initiative must play a major
role.
According to him, the payment system vision (2020) has not gained significant acceptance from Nigerians, as mobile money penetration in the country still stands at a paltry one per cent despite the launch of the cashless society policy since 2013.
“Mobile money penetration in the country still stands at a paltry one per cent even after five years of operation, compared to penetration levels of 60 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively, for Kenya and
Ghana.”
Owolabi called on the Federal Government to encourage the Agent Banking Initiative by creating points, where people could go to any time of the day to cash-in and cash-out, and also pass transactions into the platform.
He opined that more awareness campaigns and commitment of Nigerians to the cashless policy would improve its penetration across Nigeria.
“Automated electronic bill payments can help individuals eliminate late fees. When people carry less cash, they are less susceptible to cash theft,” he said.
Earlier, an economic expert, Mr. Emeka Ene, had said many people across the globe made payments electronically rather than in person or
cash.
“It can then be said that the recent financial system is the product of centuries of innovation. This financial system started as a barter economy and has moved through various incarnations in response to limitations inherent in the evolving systems,”
he said.
He said the payment system played a very crucial role in any economy, adding that the banking system was the channel through which financial resources flowed from one segment of the economy to another.
“It, therefore, represents the major foundation of the modern market economy. To this end, the world has witnessed an upsurge of electronic payment instruments meant to facilitate trade and simplify payments,”
he said.
Ene noted that before the introduction of electronic payment system in Nigerian banks, customers had to walk into banking halls to carry out transactions of all kinds. They had to queue up and spend hours waiting to talk to a teller and/or make their transactions.