The organised private sector has taken a swipe at the recent deplorable experience encountered by bank customers across the country.
The group expressed disgust at the network fluctuations, which stalled financial transactions for some days, thereby putting corporate organisations and individuals in dilemma throughout the period it lasted.
The Director-General of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), in an interview with New Telegraph in Lagos, said the hitch caused delays in the payment of workers’ salaries in manufacturing establishment and other firms as cash could be mobilised successfully.
Ajayi-Kadir explained that complaints on poor inter bank clearing and settlement system were high. He advised that the CBN should take decisive action on such matters, especially in situations where transferred cash fails to deliver in days.
According to him, many Nigerian banks have been found wanting and culprits in such disruptions, and there is need for the apex bank to stamp its authority by wading into the controversy and bring permanent solution to it.
The MAN DG pointed out that MAN Secretariat had been receiving a number of complaints from members on the frustration that they have been facing over the frequent breakdown of bank services in the country.
Last week, some banks experienced fluctuations in their network system, with many transactions hanging, thereby causing salary earners to wait much longer.
Ajayi-Kadir stated that the frequent breakdown of bank services caused inconveniences and disruption to the daily lives of millions of Nigerians, including those operating in the private sector.
He said: “I think there is need for the CBN to come to Nigerians’ aid with this frequent breakdown of services in the Nigeria’s financial institutions as network issue is frustrating and bringing more hardships to Nigerians and businesses as a whole in the country.
We want the CBN to wade into this matter, which requires serious attention. Last week, many salary earners could not be paid their salaries as one of the banks had no network.
Ajayi-Kadir said: “So it will be good for the apex bank to come in and find a lasting solution to the frequent breakdown of bank services in the country.
“For instance, our members are not spared as we have been inundated with many complaints on the porous banking activities going on in Nigerian at the moment with many complaining of failed transactions.”
Recall that in a message shared across its social media platforms, one of the affected banks said it was carrying out a routine IT maintenance to improve its quality of service.
“Please be informed that we are currently undertaking a routine maintenance of our Information Technology Infrastructure, to enable us to significantly improve the quality of service rendered to you.
“On Tuesday, October 01, 2024, our Mobile Banking App., USSD Service, Internet Banking, and Corporate Internet Banking platforms will be unavailable between the hours of 12:01 am and 2:30 pm WAT.
“We solicit your understanding and offer our assurances that measures are in place to minimise any service interruptions during the exercise,” the bank stated.
However, reports suggested that the bank may be doing more than IT maintenance but migrating its core banking platform to a new one. Tha bank, which previously used Phoenix, a software developed by London-based Finastra, is reportedly migrating to Oracle’s Flexcube, a platform used by many other Nigerian banks.
For banks, switching their core banking software is a significant change that requires transferring large amounts of data and more rigorous action than regular IT maintenance.