Friday, March 29, 2024

Electronic payment transactions hit N285.95 trn


…records 5.98% growth in Q4, 2021

Credit to private sector stands at N71.71trn

Again, Buhari rejects amendment of Customs Act

BY BAMIDELE FAMOOFO

Selected banking sector data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday showed that financial institutions in Africa’s largest economy recorded a big gain in electronic payment in 2021, especially in the fourth quarter.

Total e-payment in Q4, 2021 stood at N285.95 trillion, representing an increase of 5.98 percent compared to N269.82 trillion recorded in Q3, 2021.

In addition, N71.71trn was reported as a credit to the private sector in Q4 2021, indicating a growth rate of 6.52 percent from Q3 2021.

A review of the performance of the sector in 2021 showed that the total credit allocated to the private sector in Q1 2021 stood at N62.28 trillion.

The top three credit allocations went into the oil & gas industrial sector, manufacturing sector, and the general service sector with N11.97 trillion (19.22%), N9.82trillion (15.77%), and N5.55trillion (8.92%) respectively.

Similarly, in Q2 2021, total credit allocation increased by 5.64 percent to N65.79trillion, with the top three allocations to the oil & gas industrial sector, manufacturing sector, and general service sector recorded at N12.34 trillion (18.75%), N10.83 trillion (16.46%) and N6.24trillion (9.48%) respectively.

The Q3 2021 credit allocations to the private sector further increased by 2.33% from the amount recorded in Q2 2021, showing a total of N67.33 trillion. Of this amount, allocation to the oil & gas industrial sector stood top at N12.32 trillion (18.29%), followed by the manufacturing sector with N11.14trillion (16.55%) and the general service sector with N6.49trillion (9.64%).

Again, the oil & gas industrial sector recorded the highest allocation with N12.48 trillion (17.40%), followed by the manufacturing sector with N12.16trillion (16.96%) and the general service sector with N7.08trillion (9.87%).

In Q1 2021, 1.96billion volumes of e-payment transactions were recorded through ATM, POS, Internet, NEFT, RTGS, USSD, Mobile, and Direct Channels.

The volume of e-payment transactions in Q2 2021, increased by 13.11 percent to 2.22billion, while 2.43billion was recorded in Q3 2021 showing a growth rate of 9.49 percent.

However, the volume of e-payment transactions decreased by 2.16 percent to N2.38billion in Q4 2021. In terms of values of e-payment transactions made, N238.87 trillion was recorded in Q1 2021 and N269.73 trillion in Q2 2021.

The staff strength of deposit money banks in Q1 2021 stood at 94,681, inclusive of executive, senior, junior, and contract staff.

In Q2 2021, this decreased to 92,780 and further decreased to 92,699 in Q3 2021.

However, Q4 2021 recorded staff strength of 93,090, indicating an increase of 0.42 percent.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has returned the Customs and Excise Management Act amendment bill to the National Assembly after refusing to sign the bill into law.

The President returned the bill raising observations on about 24 clauses and the schedules in the bill as passed by both chambers of the National Assembly.

The President disagreed with Clauses 4(b), 7(2), 7(3), 10(1)(a), 10(1)(b), 12, 14(1)(g), 16(3), 17(4), 18(1), 18(3), 18(6)(c), 111(3), 165(5)(a), 170(1)(a), 171, 175(1)(2), 180, 181, 184, 189, 194, 279, 181 and the Schedule.

Following the President’s refusal to sign the bill, which seeks to amend the 64-year-old Customs Act, the House rescinded its earlier decision on the clauses and committed the bill to the Committee of the whole House for reconsideration and further legislative action.
However, the House on Tuesday reconsidered the clauses objected to by the President and approved the correction of such clauses.

Deputy Speaker Ahmed Idris Wase, who presided over plenary, said the bill is being returned to the parliament by the President for the third time.

He said the bill was returned because of the observation made on the nature of the clauses by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation.

He told members that the required corrections have been made on the bill by the House Committee.

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