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CENTRAL Bank Of Nigeria has imposed 0.5% Cybersecurity Levy on Electronic Transfers to take effect in two weeks.
The CBN made the announcement in a circular signed by Chibuzor Efobi, the Director of Payments System Management, and Haruna Mustafa, the Director of Financial Policy and Regulation.
The circular was directed to all Commercial, Merchant, non-interest and payment service banks, among others.
According to the apex bank, the directive is a follow-up on an earlier letter dated June 25, 2018 (Ref: BPS/DIR/GEN/CIR/05/008) and October 5, 2018 (Ref: BSD/DIR/GEN/LAB/11/023), respectively, on compliance with the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) Act 2015.
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The deduction and collection of the Cybersecurity Levy is a sequel to the enactment of the 2024 Cybercrime (prohibition, prevention etc) Amendment Act of 2024, the CBN revealed.
“Following the enactment of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) (amendment) Act 2024 and under 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).”
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“Deductions shall commence within two (2) 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 5th business day of every subsequent month.
“Finally, all institutions under the regulatory purview of the CBN are hereby directed to note and comply with the provisions of the Act and this circular.”
However, 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 will remain unaffected by the new charge.
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 are also in affected by the Cyber security levy.
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16 Transactions Exempted
Here’s a breakdown of the 16 exempted transactions:
1. Loan Disbursements and Repayments – Facilitating smoother financial assistance and debt servicing without additional costs.
2. Salary Payments – Ensuring that employees receive their earnings in full, without deductions for cybersecurity.
3. Intra-account Transfers – Both within the same bank and across banks for the same customer are not subject to the levy.
4. Intra-bank Customer Transfers – Movements between customers of the same bank remain unaffected.
5. Instructions from Other Financial Institutions – Related to correspondent banking activities.
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6. Interbank Placements – Critical for maintaining liquidity among banks.
7. Transfers between Banks and CBN – Essential for regulatory and operational activities.
8. Inter-branch Transfers within a Bank – Essential for internal bank operations.
9. Cheque Clearing and Settlements – Central to banking operations, exempt from the levy.
10. Letters of Credit – Crucial for international trade financing.
11. Banks’ Recapitalisation-related Funding – Specific to bulk fund movements from collection accounts.
12. Deposits and Savings Transactions – Includes investments like Treasury Bills, Bonds, and Commercial Papers.
13. Government Social Welfare Programmes – Including pension payments to support societal welfare.
14. Non-profit and Charitable Transactions – Encouraging donations by exempting them from the levy.
15. Educational Institutions’ Transactions – Including tuition and other school-related payments.
16. Transactions Involving Bank’s Internal Accounts – Covers a range of internal bank financial movements.
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