NCC directs banks to deduct USSD transaction fees from users’ mobile airtime

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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has mandated deposit money banks (DMBs) to cease deducting unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) transaction charges directly from customers’ accounts.

According to an email sent to customers by the United Bank for Africa (UBA) on Tuesday, the charges will now be deducted from users’ mobile airtime, with the directive taking effect from June 3.

“In line with the directive of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), please be informed that effective June 3, 2025, charges for USSD banking services will no longer be deducted from your bank account,” the statement reads.

“Going forward, these charges will be deducted directly from your mobile airtime balance in accordance with the NCC’s End-User Billing (EUB) model.

“Under this new billing structure, each USSD session will attract a charge of ₦6.98 per 120 seconds, which will be billed by your mobile network operator.

“You will receive a consent prompt at the start of each session, and airtime will only be deducted upon your confirmation and availability of the bank to fulfil this service.

“If you do not wish to continue using USSD banking under this new model, you may choose to discontinue use of the USSD channel.”