By Babajide Komolafe, with agency reports

Professor Pat Utomi has said that for the Central Bank of Nigeria  (CBN), cashless policy to succeed, cost of e-payment transactions must be reduced by service providers while building public confidence.

Utomi, a Director at the Lagos Business School, stated this recently in Lagos, at the just concluded e-Payment Thought Leadership Breakfast Series with the Theme: Fast Tracking e-Payment Growth in Nigeria, organized by Intermac Consulting Limited, an integrated consulting firm with focus on e-business but with particular emphasis on e-banking and e-payment intermediation services.

Utomi who was the special guest of honour at the event stressed that there is great need for e-payment service providers to offer very attractive costs of transactions, corporate, build confidence among the banked and unbanked publics to fast track e-payment growth within Nigeria.

He said, “We must reduce cost if we must achieve the cash-lite policy of the CBN, we must reduce cost of transactions, and there is also the need for us to get it right. People who are competing in this case must cooperate  and not create entry barriers as first entry movers for others. We must build confidence, and government has a very big role to play here. And there must be a very high level of mass education.’’

The event which was attended by  key players within the e-payment and banking industries including representatives of the CBN also had in attendance the Managing Director of Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Plc, Mr Emmanuel Ehidiamhen Okoyomon; and the Chairman of eBanking Industry Heads, Mr. Chuma Ezirim.

Keynote speakers at the event included; Mr. Segun Adesola, Managing Director of Wema Bank Plc; Mr. Niyi Ajao, Ag. Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria InterBank Settlement System, NIBSS; and Mrs. Bola Adesola, Managing Director of Standard Chatared Bank.