Association of Point of Sale Service Providers (POS) has threatened to suspend Verve card transaction services nationwide if the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) fail to intervene in an alleged exclusivity arrangement involving Verve International and Interswitch Limited.
The association made the disclosure in a statement signed by its Communications Consultant, Yomi Idowu.
According to Idowu, the association had formally protested what it described as persistent unlawful practices by the two companies, alleging that their actions violate existing CBN regulations and provisions of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPC) 2018.
The association stated that, as representatives of a coalition of CBN-licensed payment acceptors, acquirers, processors and switches, its members may be compelled to suspend the acceptance, acquiring, processing and switching of Verve card transactions if urgent action is not taken by regulators.
It said the decision had become unavoidable due to what it described as escalating unlawful conduct that undermines the integrity of Nigeria’s payment ecosystem, erodes the capital base of participating institutions and breaches regulatory requirements.
The association alleged that the companies maintain an exclusive monopoly over Verve transaction processing and abuse a dominant position in the domestic card scheme market in contravention of relevant competition and payment regulations.
It further accused the firms of imposing scheme fees above the regulated Merchant Service Commission (MSC) share attributable to acquirers and carrying out unauthorised debits on the settlement accounts of acquirers, processors and switches.
According to the association, its members played a significant role in expanding the acceptance and growth of Verve cards across Nigeria at substantial cost and in compliance with regulatory requirements, without receiving subsidies from Verve or Interswitch.
The group noted that other card scheme operators had already eliminated exclusivity arrangements in line with CBN regulations and urged the CBN and FCCPC to investigate the allegations and ensure fair competition within the payment services industry.
It warned that failure to resolve the dispute could disrupt electronic payment services relied upon by millions of consumers, merchants and small businesses across the country.
