Business
Lagos Traders Decry Shortage Of PoS Terminals
Traders in Lagos have complained that the unavailability of Point of Sales (PoS) terminals might hinder the implementation of the cash-less policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the state.
They told newsmen in separate interviews that the aim of the scheme might be defeated if the CBN fails to address the shortage of PoS immediately.
Our correspondents, who visited some major markets in Lagos, recently reported that many traders were yet to key into the pilot scheme, 10 days after its commencement, due to non- availability of the terminals.
President, Association of Alaba Traders, Uche Ugochukwu, advised CBN to deploy more PoS terminals, adding that it was necessary to remove any hurdle that might hinder the implementation of the policy.
The association president said that the PoS terminals were still inadequate in major markets in Lagos.
He said that the charges for using the terminals ranged between two per cent and three per cent, depending on the service provider.
Ugochukwu said that the remittance of money to traders’ accounts “is real time as it is online process’’.
He also said that network connectivity was sometimes a major challenge to the efficiency of the system.
According to him, the deposit and withdrawal limits under the policy were impacting negatively on their businesses. “It slows down transactions,” he said.
The Vice-President, Ladipo Auto Central Executive Committee (LACEC), Justice Mbila, said there was the need to create more awareness on the new policy to enable more traders to key into it.
He recalled that some officials of banks visited the market early in the year to educate traders on the policy and teach them how to use the PoS terminals.
Mbila, however, said that majority of Ladipo traders were illiterates, insisting that they needed more enlightenment to enable them to understand the benefits of the policy.
Emaka Obina, a spare part dealer, said that he did not understand the new system.
He said that he had not seen a PoS terminal, but he believed that it would not be difficult to operate, just like the mobile phones.
Mrs. Shukurat Adekunle, a beverage seller at Apongbon market, told The Tide source that she had only seen the demonstration of the PoS on television, but that she had not seen it physically.
She admitted that there were enough enlightenment campaigns on the scheme, but that the apex bank should have extend the campaign and ensure that enough PoS terminals were made available.
The acting Chief Executive Officer, Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), Niyi Ajao, said that 30,000 terminals had been deployed and connected to NIBSS central switch since January.
He said that the issue of delay in debiting merchants accounts after transactions had been addressed and customers’ account were being debited within one day.
The governor of CBN, Malam Lamido Sanusi, said in January, that bank customers would not pay charges for using Point of Sale (PoS) machines.
He said that the cost of such deals would be borne by merchants by paying 1.25 per cent of the transaction fee.
Meanwhile, Interswitch Nigeria, provider of cards and other e-payment services, has assured that there would be an improvement on Point of Sales (PoS) terminal and other e-transaction channels facing challenges.
According to the company, solution to public complaints on the e-payment challenges was in areas that have drawn immediate attention of both the regulator and stakeholders. The company described them as issues instituted from infrastructural and technology instability.
The Director, Payment, Infrastructure and Transaction Processing, Akeem lawal said the newness of PoS and other e-payment methods, aside from ATM, couple with infrastructure are some of the factors militating against the development of the cashless policy.
Speaking to newsmen in Lagos, over the weekend, he said: “The Central Bank of Nigeria has licensed several PTSP operators to focus on the PoS market and ensure that first and second level supports are given to business and merchant outlets that have PoS terminals.”
Cornerstone of Financial Services
A survey of more than 1 000 global finance leaders undertaken by digital payment network Ripple shows that 72% of respondents believe they need to offer a digital asset solution to remain competitive.
According to Ripple, leaders from the banking, fintech, corporate and asset management sector have made it clear that the “digital asset revolution is happening now”.
“Digital assets are quickly becoming a cornerstone of financial services, underpinned by progressive regulation, growing interest from Tier-1 banks, a steady consumer shift from banks to fintech providers, and booming stablecoin adoption,” Ripple says.
The survey was conducted in early 2026 and the findings released in March.
Stablecoin Boon or Bane?
Ripple has experienced significant success in the stablecoin sector since launching its Ripple USD (RLUSD) stablecoin in 2024.
With a market cap of $1.56 billion, it is considered a major regulated player in the market.
No doubt the platform was pleased to learn through its own survey that financial leaders were most bullish about stablecoins.
Roughly three-quarters of respondents believed they could boost cash-flow efficiency and unlock trapped working capital.
Ripple noted that finance leaders were thinking about stablecoins as more than “just a new way to execute payments”; instead, they viewed them as effective tools for treasury management.
In March 2026, Ripple began testing a new trade finance model built around RLUSD in a bid to increase the speed of cross-border payments.
The pilot initiative, developed alongside supply chain finance company Unloq [https://unloq.com], is running on the XRP Ledger inside a testing framework developed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
The Asian city-state is one of the platform’s biggest growth markets.
The idea behind the project is to see whether stablecoin-based settlement can streamline trade finance, too often hampered by reliance on intermediaries and slow reconciliation.
The only potential drawback is that if the initiative takes off, the Ripple to USD price could be negatively affected.
Ripple has always championed its native XRP token as a bridge asset, the “middleman” in the process of a financial institution turning dollars in the US into pounds in the UK, for example.
Ripple converts dollars into XRP and then back into pounds.
If RLUSD can do exactly the same thing, questions will be asked about XRP’s relevance.
That is a bridge Ripple will have to cross if it gets to that point.
Tokenisation Partners
Another interesting finding from Ripple’s survey is that most banks and asset managers are seeking tokenisation partners to help execute their strategies.
Some 89% of respondents said digital asset storage and custody were top priority. “Token servicing/lifecycle management also ranks highly for banks at 82%, while asset managers place greater emphasis on primary distribution at 80%,” Ripple found.
The survey also revealed that just more than half of fintechs and financial institutions want an infrastructure provider that can offer a “one-stop-shop solution”. This rose to 71% among corporate financial leaders.
Ripple attributes this to institutions and firms wanting uncomplicated, cohesive systems.
Infrastructure Rules
In its final analysis, Ripple says companies across the board are looking for partners and solutions that are “secure, compliant, battle-tested and that enable growth and execution”.
“The message is clear: infrastructure decisions made today will shape competitive positioning tomorrow.”
No surprise that this is precisely where Ripple is placing much of its focus.
