CBN Directs Banks, Others TGo Begin Collection Of Cybersecurity Levy
By People’s Voice Nigeria | News
To ensure compliance with the Cybercrimes(Prohibition, Prevention etc) (Amendment) Act 2024, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed financial institutions in the country to commence the deduction of a 0.005% levy on electronic transactions for the National Cybersecurity Fund within the next two weeks.
According to the CBN, the deducted amount should be reflected in the customer’s account with the narration, “Cybersecurity levy.”
In a circular to commercial, merchant, non-interest and Payment Service Banks, mobile money operators and payment service providers, posted on its website on Monday, the apex bank also directed that the levies collected in bulk should be remitted monthly to the National Cybersecurity Fund (NCF) account by the 5th business day of every subsequent month.
In addition, it directed that system reconfigurations towards ensuring complete and timely submission of remittance files to the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), should be completed by the commercial, merchant, non-interest and Payment Service Banks and mobile money operators within the next four weeks, while other financial institutions-Micro-Finance Banks (MFBs), Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs) and Development Finance Institutions) should complete theirs within the next eight weeks.
The CBN emphasised that the Act, “prescribes that failure to remit the levy is an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of not less than 2% of the annual turnover of the defaulting businesses amongst others.”
According to the apex bank, exemptions from the cybersecurity 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, inter-branch transfers within a bank, cheques clearing and settlement and Letters of Credit.
Also exempt are Banks’ recapitalisation-related funding, savings and deposits, including transactions involving long-term investments such as Treasury Bills, Bonds and Commercial Papers, government social welfare programme transactions, as well as non profit and charitable transactions.
New Telegraph reports that the CBN had in a circular dated 25th of June 2018, released guidelines for the collection of a 0.005% levy on electronic transactions for the National Cybersecurity Fund.
