Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), has asked customers to report any bank that charges for USSD service after their mobile airtime has been deducted.
This comes as telcos begin the implementation of the new end-user billing model for unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) services.
Under the new systems, introduced by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), USSD transaction fees will be deducted from users’ mobile airtime — rather than their bank accounts as previously done.
The innovation is expected to improve user experience and resolve disputes between banks and mobile network operators (MNOs) over unpaid USSD service fees.
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Speaking at an event on Thursday, Adebayo advised consumers to contact their banks if a deduction occurs on their accounts for USSD services, stressing that telecoms operators are not responsible for those extra charges.
“If people see deductions on account of USSD on their bank account, after seeing it from their airtime, they must go to the bank to complain. I hope it will not happen, but experience tells me it’s something to watch out for,” he said.
“So what it means is that once you are debited on your airtime, you should not see anything again related to USSD deduction from your account. If that happens, the consumers should go to the banks. We are not part of that second leg charge.”
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‘CONSUMERS WON’T PAY MORE UNDER NEW USSD BILLING MODEL’
Also speaking, Lynda Saint-Nwafor, chief enterprise business officer at MTN, said the implementation of the new USSD billing model will not result in additional costs to consumers.
Saint-Nwafor noted that while the payment channel is changing, the charges remain unchanged.
On efforts to ensure transparency and accountability in the new process, the business officer said telcos have introduced standardised messaging and monthly service reporting.
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