The Central Bank of Nigeria has reduced the cybersecurity levy on electronic transactions from 0.5 per cent to 0.005 per cent in its new fiscal guidelines for 2024-2025.
This reduction follows the controversial introduction of the levy earlier in the year, which was met with opposition from both the Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, and bank customers.
The levy, introduced under the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act 2015 amended in 2024, is set to support the National Cybersecurity Fund, administered by the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The 0.005 per cent fee will be charged on all electronic transactions conducted by commercial, merchant, non-interest, and payment service banks, among others.
In a directive issued by the CBN, certain transactions will be exempt from the levy, including wage payments, loan disbursements and repayments, and transfers between the same bank accounts or banks for the same client.
The exclusion also covers intra-bank transfers, clearing and settlement of cheques, Letters of Credit, and transactions between banks and the CBN.