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Telecoms giant MTN Nigeria has revealed that it is owed ₦74 billion out of the estimated ₦160 billion Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) debt by Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) as of November 2024.
According to MTN’s 2024 financial statement released Friday, it has received ₦32 billion from the banks, following a regulatory directive by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
Background on the USSD Dispute
USSD services allow bank customers to perform transactions like transfers, bill payments, and airtime purchases without internet access. The prolonged debt crisis, which lasted about five years, stemmed from disputes over billing charges — particularly after a flat ₦6.98 fee per transaction was introduced.
Earlier this year, the NCC ordered telecoms operators to disconnect USSD services of 18 banks over unpaid debts.
To resolve the impasse, the CBN and NCC jointly issued a circular on December 20, 2024, with new terms: 60% of pre-API invoices to be settled by July 2, 2025, 85% of post-API invoices (from after February 2022) to be settled by December 31, 2024, Future invoices must be paid within one month of issuance
MTN’s Financial Woes Continue
Despite recording a ₦3.36 trillion revenue in 2024 (a 36% increase from 2023), MTN reported a ₦400.44 billion loss after tax, up from a ₦137.02 billion loss in 2023 — a 192.25% increase.
This sharp decline is attributed to: Record-high inflation, The naira’s devaluation, Forex losses impacting its Nigerian operations.
Operational Updates
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Capital Expenditure: MTN invested ₦443.5 billion (excluding leases) to expand its network capacity and improve service quality.
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Subscribers: Total subscribers rose to 80.9 million (+1.6%)
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Data Users: Active data subscribers increased by 7% to 47.7 million
CEO Karl Toriola emphasized the company’s continued efforts in improving user experience and growing its subscriber base, despite challenges like the NCC’s SIM-NIN linkage mandate.
