The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has stated that the Cyber Security Levy, suspended in May 2024, remains suspended.
The apex bank made this clarification in a statement titled, ‘Clarification on the Monetary, Credit, Foreign Trade, and Exchange Policy Guidelines for Fiscal Years 2024 – 2025 (Monetary Policy Circular No. 45).’ It stated that its earlier released circular was being misinterpreted or misrepresented.
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The CBN “reiterates that the publication is a compilation of previously issued policies and guidelines issued by the Bank up to a cut-off date, typically December 31 of the relevant year.”
It stated that while media reports suggested that the cyber security levy had been reintroduced, it hadn’t, as the circular was issued before December 31, 2023. It, however, said a May 2024 circular has now superseded this.
“One example is the Cyber Security Levy, which was suspended in May 2024, superseding the circular reported in the Guidelines,” it said.
“In summary, the Guidelines must primarily be viewed as a record of policies, circulars and directives issued by the Bank up to the end of 2023. They are not new directives and should not be reported as such,” it added.
In May 2024, the CBN announced the introduction of a 0.5 percent cybersecurity levy on some electronic transactions.
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The levy, introduced under the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act 2015, amended in 2024, was to support the National Cybersecurity Fund, administered by the Office of the National Security Adviser. It was to be charged on some electronic transactions conducted by commercial, merchant, non-interest, and payment service banks, among others.
