Nigeria’s new payment infrastructure hits 153,000 transactions in pilot phase

Nigeria’s National Payment Stack (NPS) processed 153,000 transactions during its pilot phase, moving closer to a full rollout. This next-generation payment infrastructure aims to unify banks, fintechs, mobile money operators, and other financial institutions on a single payment rail.

The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) Managing Director and CEO, Premier Oiwoh, announced this milestone at the launch of the Nigeria Payments System Vision (PSV) 2028 in Abuja.

According to Oiwoh, the National Payment Stack recently recorded its highest transaction volume during testing and is now awaiting final approval before it can be formally launched.

“We’ve started a control pilot transaction on the National Payment Stack. I’m very happy to announce that last night we had the highest level of transactions at 153,000 on the National Payment Stack. So, I’m awaiting the Governor’s nod to put it up formally,” he said.

NIBSS

The National Payment Stack is designed to serve as the backbone of Nigeria’s digital payments ecosystem. It aims to enable faster and more secure transactions while allowing different financial institutions to communicate seamlessly with one another.

A single rail for Nigeria’s growing payments economy

The platform forms a key part of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Payments System Vision 2028, a roadmap created to modernise how Nigerians make payments, save money, invest, and access financial services.

Today, digital payments in Nigeria are handled through multiple systems operated by banks, fintech companies, payment service providers, and mobile money operators. The NPS seeks to bring these players together through a unified infrastructure that reduces friction and improves efficiency.

Industry stakeholders believe the system could make digital transactions faster, strengthen security, and support innovation across the financial sector.

The pilot programme has already shown the platform can handle significant transaction volumes ahead of a nationwide launch.

Inclusion and affordability remain major concerns

While stakeholders welcomed the progress, many argued that technology alone will not determine the success of the initiative.

Oiwoh said execution and accessibility would be more important than the technology itself, noting that millions of Nigerians remain excluded from formal financial services. He also advocated lower transaction costs, arguing that expensive digital payments could undermine financial inclusion efforts.

“If we say we are driving financial inclusion and those we are driving it for don’t have access or we are driving with high costs, then we have failed as a country,” said Uche Uzeoebo, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Shared Agent Network Expansion Facilities (SANEF).

However, not everyone supports further reductions in transaction fees. Moniepoint CEO Tosin Eniolorunda warned that Nigeria already has some of the cheapest payment services globally and that operators must remain financially sustainable.

The National Payment Stack is expected to play a major role in the CBN’s target of achieving 95% financial inclusion by 2028.

The regulator hopes to bring an estimated 50 million more Nigerians into the formal financial system over the next few years through better infrastructure, stronger interoperability, and wider access to digital financial services.

If successfully implemented, the NPS could make it easier for traders, small businesses, farmers, and rural communities to access and use digital payments, helping expand participation in Nigeria’s growing digital economy.

Similar read: NIBSS CEO Premier Oiwoh pushes for zero transfer fees in Payments Vision 2028