The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has ordered all acquirers, processors, and payment terminal service providers (PTSPs) to implement mandatory dual connectivity with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and Unified Payment Services Limited (UPSL) for point-of-sale (PoS) transactions within one month.

The decision was revealed by the apex bank in a circular dated December 11, 2025, signed by Rakiya Yusuf, CBN’s director of the payments system supervision department, and released on Friday.

“Mandatory Dual Connectivity –All Acquirers, Processors, and Payment Terminal Service Providers (PTSPs) shall establish and maintain active connectivity with both licensed Payments Terminal Service Aggregators (PTSAs), namely the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and Unified Payment Services Limited (UPSL),” the circular reads.

The CBN also required that all transaction routing systems be connected with the two PTSAs to provide continuous, automated rollover in the event of downtime or service disruptions.

“Testing & Validation – NIBSS and UPSL, in collaboration with regulated Financial institutions, shall conduct periodic tests to validate redundancy, failover effectiveness, and overall system resilience,” the financial regulator said.

The apex bank also asked NIBSS and UPSL to alert the banks in real time of any system outage or disruption.

“NIBSS and UPSL are required to notify Director, Payments System Supervision Department, of any system downtime or service disruption affecting its platforms and services within 24 hours of the occurrence, stating the nature, causes and remedied actions,” CBN said.

The bank added that all regulated financial institutions are required to

“comply with this directive within one (1) month from the date of this circular”.

Payment service providers (PSPs) were instructed by the apex bank on September 11 to use NIBSS and UPSL to route all transactions from PoS terminals at merchant and agency locations.