The accumulated debt from Unstructured Supplementary Service Data which Deposit Money Banks owe telecommunication firms has risen to over N100bn.
As a result, banks and telcos are expected to hold another round of meetings with a view to resolving the deadlock.
The debt was put at N80bn a few months ago. The Head of Operations of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria, Gbolahan Awonuga, in a conversation with The PUNCH, confirmed that USSD debts had grown from N80bn as of November 2022 to over N100bn In April.
According to him, much progress as regards repayment has not been made, with telcos and banks still locked up in discussions.
He told The PUNCH, “It is still there. The banks and MNOs are still discussing, there is no way forward. The debt has continued to increase and is now over N100bn.”
A top-ranking source in one of the telecom firms disclosed to The PUNCH that USSD debt has grown beyond N100bn. The source noted that banks owe only one of the telcos about N100bn. The source stated, “The N100bn does not cut it. As of November, last year, the amount that was owed to us was N90bn.” – PUNCH
