Nigeria must improve on service level agreements: “It has been reported that there is a fresh crisis brewing between the banking sector in Nigeria and the telecom operators over the lingering N80 billion unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) debt banks owed the telcos. The telcos have called out the banks for not complying with the repayment plan, stressing that the debt has increased to N80 billion from N42 billion reported last year.”
I find it very strange when some disputes emerge. Does it mean people do not sign agreements before launching some products. Why should banks keep the monies? But read me: I hope this alleged N80 billion is not already disclosed as “profits” by banks.
But this is a lesson for telcos: disrupting banking will require more than technology. Indeed, since MTN and Airtel Africa listed in the Nigerian stock exchange, many banks have lost steam. That disintermediation is well correlated on banking performance and offered investors options which would have been available had they not existed. What that means is clear: frenemy infinity, they will be friends and enemies for a really long time until regulatory ordinance evolves into a decent level of maturity.
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Comment: The telcos are not thinking fast, we have passed the era of begging customers to pay for services already enjoyed. Telcos just need to roll out prepaid plans and sell to banks. Yes, you can purchase 1 million USSD calls, and once you reach that limit, if you don’t top up, the USSD service halts!
No time for ‘we are calling on’, ‘we are pleading’; those pitiful lines make you weak. Collect your pay upfront!
Comment 2: Well said. Pay as you use is the best solution. The telcos should cut off their services right now, that will be the solution to paying up what the banks already owe.
Telcos Lament Over Lack of Cooperation From Banks as USSD Debt Hits N80bn
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