The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a directive mandating that all Point of Sale (PoS) terminals in Nigeria be geo-tagged within 60 days, with a compliance deadline of October 20, 2025, as part of efforts to curb fraud and enhance digital payment security.
Announced on August 25, 2025, in a circular signed by Dr. Rakiya Yusuf, Director of the Payments System Supervision Department, the policy requires all existing and newly deployed PoS terminals to have native geolocation features with double-frequency GPS receivers, ensuring transactions occur within a 10-meter radius of registered merchant locations.
Non-compliant terminals will be deactivated, and operators like Moniepoint, OPay, PalmPay, and banks must register devices with Payment Terminal Service Aggregators (PTSA) using precise GPS coordinates.
The directive, which also mandates migration to the ISO 20022 messaging standard by October 31, 2025, aims to eliminate “ghost” terminals, enable real-time transaction monitoring, and align Nigeria’s payment system with global standards.
