As Bank E-payment Rises, Customers’ Cheque Usage Drops
Cheque usage by bank depositors is on the decline as Automated Teller Machine, Point of Sale and other electronic payment systems gain ground.
According to figures obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria, the volume and value of cheques decreased to 4.7 million and N2.6tn in the first half of 2018, compared to the 5.3 million and N2.78tn in the corresponding period of 2017, reflecting a decline of 11.3 and 6.5 per cent, respectively.
The decrease was attributed to consumers’ preference for the use of other modes of payment.
The volume and value of electronic payments increased to 953.176 million and N62.8tn at the end of June 2018, compared with 829.422 million and N52.65tn at the end of December 2017, representing an increase of 14.92 and 19.31 per cent, respectively.
The rise reflected public confidence in the electronic payments system, the CBN stated.
During the review period, the volume and value of electronic payments (comprising ATM, PoS, mobile payments and Internet) increased to 596 million and N4.89tn in the first half of 2018 from 461.8 million and N4.29tn in the corresponding period of 2017, representing an increase of 29.1 and 13.9 per cent, respectively.
A breakdown of e-payment channels for the review period indicated that ATM remained the most patronised, accounting for 72.1 per cent, followed by PoS and mobile payments, with 20.3 and 4.6 per cent, respectively.
The web (Internet) was the least patronised, accounting for three per cent. In terms of value, ATM accounted for 64.8 per cent; PoS, 20.8 per cent; mobile payments, 12.2 per cent and the web (Internet) accounted for 2.2 per cent.
The number of ATMs at end of June 2018 stood at 18,052, with increased transactions, both in volume and value by 17.2 and 4.1 per cent to 429.8 million and N3.17tn, respectively, above 366.8 million and N3.046tn in the corresponding period of 2017.
The volume and value of Internet transactions increased in the first half of 2018 by 54.8 and 30.8 per cent to 17.8 million and N109.5bn, compared with 11.5 million and N83.7bn, respectively, in the corresponding period of 2017. The rise was as a result of increased awareness and acceptance of Internet payment.
The number of PoS terminals deployed at the end of June 2018 was 185,026.
The volume and value of transactions rose by 103.4 and 66.9 per cent to 120.8 million and N1.018tn, respectively, in the first half of 2018, above the 59.4 million and N610.1bn in the corresponding period of 2017.
The rise in usage of PoS terminals was on account of increasing public confidence in the channel.
The volume and value of mobile payments increased by 14 and seven per cent to 27.6 million and N594.9bn, respectively, in the first half of 2018, above 24.2 million and N555.8bn in the corresponding period of 2017.
The rise was due to increased acceptance of mobile payments as an easier alternative.
