Federal government cautions network providers, fintech against providing services to loan sharks
In a bid to put an end to the unethical activities and exploitative practices of some digital money lenders, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCPCP, says it has ordered Telecommunication/Technology companies, including Mobile Network Operators and Digital Payment Systems to stop providing services to digital money lenders, who are currently under investigation for operating without regulatory approval.
Oh, really? How will this affect the operations of loan sharks?
Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, Babatunde Irukera lamented that despite being under investigation, the loan sharks have found new ways of operating by leveraging on technology and other financial services alternatives to circumvent account freezing and app suspension order placed on them.
Irukera said “the commission has entered further orders to Google Play Store to draw down the following apps which were discovered to be created and operating as a circumvention of existing investigation interventions: Maxi Credit, Here4U. ChaCha and SoftPay. “
By this order, all operating payment systems like flutter wave, Opay, Paystack, and Monify are expected to immediately stop providing payment or transaction services to those loan sharks under investigation.
