Telco Customers to Get Automatic Refunds Under CBN–NCC Airtime, Data Rules

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) have released an exposure of the joint framework for the quick resolution of failed airtime and data purchase transactions, which will involve no customer intervention.

Recall that a month ago, Business Post reported that the two agencies came up with a directive that failed airtime and data purchase transactions were to be completed within 30 seconds, following rising consumer complaints over debits without value.

According to the exposure draft, mobile network operators and other industry players must ensure that refunds for failed airtime and data purchase transactions are completed within 30 seconds, and without any customer intervention.

This means that the customer should not have to file a complaint, call customer care, or submit a ticket before the refund is completed within 30 seconds of the failed transaction. Any delay beyond this window would be a breach of the rule.

The obligation is not limited to mobile network operators (MTNs, Airtel, Glo, 9mobile) alone; it also covers payment service providers, aggregators, fintechs, and value-added service providers involved in airtime and data sales.

The directive is contained in an exposure draft of a joint CBN and NCC framework released to the public, which targets situations where customers’ bank accounts are debited without corresponding airtime or data delivery.

The framework, according to the CBN, was developed to address “rising consumer complaints around failed airtime and data purchase transactions where customers are debited without successful service delivery.”

The document noted that the initiative is designed to “institutionalise clear accountability, standardise resolution timelines, and ensure a sustainable, coordinated approach to consumer redress across the financial and telecommunications ecosystems.”

Under the proposed rules, refunds for failed transactions must be processed automatically and in real time. The framework explicitly states that where airtime or data delivery fails, stakeholders are required to “refund Purchaser within 30 seconds,” regardless of whether the failure occurs at the bank, NCC-authorised licensee, or mobile network operator level.

The exposure draft further emphasised that since automated reversals should require no customer intervention, it recommended “automatic system-triggered reversals” supported by end-to-end transaction visibility tools and standardised error codes across the value chain.

To reduce multiple debits and delays, banks are instructed to limit transaction re-attempts, with the framework stating that “banks are to limit re-attempts to twice only,” while customers must be notified of pending, failed, or successful transactions in real time.

On accountability, the regulators made it clear that notifications of failure carry financial consequences, stating that “notifications of failure create final settlement obligations between MNOs and NCC authorised licensees.”

It also noted that “disputes between Stakeholders about this framework and its subject matter shall first undergo dual resolution amongst affected parties. Any dispute unresolved within five working days shall be escalated to regulators (CBN and NCC), addressed to the Director Consumer Protection and Financial Inclusion Department of CBN, and/or the Director Consumer Affairs Bureau of NCC.”

The exposure draft also disclosed plans for stronger regulatory oversight, including a central monitoring platform. According to the document, “there shall be a Central Monitoring Dashboard hosted by CBN and NCC for tracking reversals, SLA breaches, and customer complaints,” to provide real-time national visibility into failed transactions.

CBN director, Consumer Protection & Financial Inclusion, Aisha Isa-Olatinwo, in a statement, invited stakeholders and members of the public to submit comments ahead of the February 20, 2026, deadline, as regulators move towards finalising what they described as a national framework to “restore subscriber trust and ensure accountability” across Nigeria’s digital financial ecosystem.