The Federal Government has announced that the mandatory registration of Point-of-Sales (PoS) operators nationwide will help reduce kidnapping and assist security agencies in apprehending recipients of ransom payments from kidnap victims.
Hussaini Magaji, the Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), made this disclosure at the formal launch of the CAC registration of agents and merchants of fintechs in Abuja.
The government’s action, backed by Section 863, Subsection 1 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020, as well as the 2013 Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) guidelines on agent banking, aims to safeguard businesses and strengthen the economy.
Magaji reiterated the government’s commitment to fully implementing the mandate by providing a fully digitized service center for easy registration. He emphasized that the registration process aligns with both legal requirements and the directives of the CBN mandating individual merchants or business entities to be captured in its database.
The 60-day deadline for registration, ending on July 7th, will not be extended, and defaulters will face appropriate sanctions. Magaji stated, “After the deadline, we would go after defaulters. If you have been identified as a criminal, security agents will go after you, we will go after them because some are being chased by the security agencies already.”
He highlighted the benefits of registration, which go beyond taxation to encompass access to loans, legality, and compliance with regulatory requirements.
“The law has stated that for any person to carry out business activity in the country, your business must be legitimate, and for your business to be legitimate, you must register, either you are doing your business as an individual or as an agent, you must register with us,” he explained.
The initiative, Magaji emphasized, aims to curb crime and fraudulent practices, particularly incidents where ransom is paid using PoS terminals. He assured that registered businesses would provide detailed information to the government, aiding security agencies in tracking down criminals.
The deadline for registration, originally set for July 7th, provides PoS operators with six months to comply with the directive.