Nigeria: NCC, CBN framework guarantees instant refunds for failed airtime, data recharges – Maida

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have jointly introduced a new regulatory framework that guarantees faster refunds for failed airtime and data recharge transactions, bringing long-standing consumer complaints to an end.

Under the new guidelines, which became fully operational in January 2026, funds deducted for unsuccessful airtime or data purchases can no longer remain in “pending” status for days or weeks.

The “Refund First, Investigate Later” Mandate

For years, millions of Nigerians have experienced situations where money was debited from their bank accounts without the corresponding airtime or data being delivered. The new framework is designed to protect consumers by ensuring prompt refunds and clearer accountability across the payments and telecommunications ecosystem.

At the core of the framework is what regulators describe as a “refund first, investigate later” approach. Speaking on the initiative, NCC Executive Vice Chairman, Dr. Aminu Maida, said the policy shifts the burden away from consumers, who were previously trapped in disputes between banks, payment processors and telecom operators.

Dr. Aisha Isa-Olatinwo, Director of Consumer Protection at the CBN, said the principle guiding the reform is straightforward. “A failed transaction means it never began,” she said, stressing that customers should not bear the cost of system failures.

Under the new Service Level Agreements (SLAs), refunds for “on-us” transactions—where the bank and payment platform are the same—must be processed instantly. For more complex “not-on-us” transactions involving multiple switches or aggregators, all parties are required to complete refunds within 48 hours, a significant improvement from the previous average of up to 14 days.

The framework also mandates the use of traceable response codes for every electronic transaction. These codes will immediately identify whether a failure occurred at the bank, payment aggregator or telecom operator, eliminating the long-standing blame game across the ecosystem.

According to Dr. Maida, investigations revealed that the lack of a standardised operational framework was the root cause of delayed refunds. “By bringing the CBN and financial institutions into a unified structure, we have standardised operations around top-ups and recharges,” he said at a recent stakeholder engagement.

Why This Matters

The scale of the problem underscores the importance of the reform. About 91 per cent of Nigerians now recharge their phones electronically, and although failure rates range between 2 per cent and 3.6 per cent, this translates into millions of affected users daily across nearly 170 million active mobile subscriptions. For low-income users who depend on small-value transactions, even a failed N500 recharge can cause significant disruption.

Under the new system, most failed transactions are expected to be resolved automatically through instant reversals. The regulators also plan to introduce an industry-wide short code in the first quarter of 2026, allowing consumers to lodge complaints without internet access. Where refunds are not received within 48 hours, consumers have been advised to escalate complaints through the NCC’s toll-free line, 622.

The NCC and CBN say the framework marks a major step toward improving consumer trust and strengthening Nigeria’s digital payments ecosystem.

How to Resolve a Failed Transaction in 2026