By Abbas Badmus
The idea of eNaira comes from the ever-expanding developments in digitalization and the need for a secured means of effecting transactions across borders.
eNaira is a central bank digital currency issued and regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). As a compliment to the existing forms of CBN-issued legal tender currency, the eNaira serves as both a store of value and a medium of exchange, offering efficiency in Nigeria’s payment ecosystem.
President Muhammad Buhari launched the eNaira on 25 October 2021, under the slogan: “Same Naira, More Possibilities”.
The introduction of the eNaira by the CBN immediately put Nigeria in the global spotlight as the first African country to launch the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
If fully embraced, there are several benefits for Nigerians and the business community, thereby eradicating many issues surrounding cash transactions.
Some benefits include speedy delivery, safe, simple trading and transactional opportunities for customers and end-users.
More specifically, the benefits to the merchants and business owners include reduced cash handling cost, elimination of failed transactions, instant settlement, increased speed of transactions, improvement in records keeping and elimination of Challenges associated with giving change to customers, amongst others.
Recently, CBN Deputy Governor, Economy Policy, Dr Kingsley Obiora, made it known in the just-concluded Abuja eNaira Merchants Mega Events held at Abuja Chambers of Commerce and industry that there is a reward scheme for merchants and business owners using the eNaira platform.
“I am pleased to inform you that the central bank of Nigeria approved a reward scheme for merchants and other users of the eNaira.
“This reward scheme includes providing merchants with the required scheme includes providing merchants with the required promotional (marketing) materials, subsidizing the current merchant service charge by 50% and activation of a nationwide sensitization which early business adopters of eNaira can leverage on to market its wider adoption “.
It is also important to note that the eNaira platform can now facilitate payments using QR codes, USSD, Wallet ID and eNaira wallet tag. Value-added services on the platform include branch or sub-wallets, employee management, and interoperability with other enterprise applications. Furthermore, these services are provided in a secure environment as the eNaira platform was built using a secure security protocol.
Ample opportunities for increasing business income abound through the adoption of eNaira. For instance, the availability of the eNaira payment option on e-commerce merchant platforms such as Remita is expected to complement the existing digital payment system, translating to about 50% increments in e-commerce transactions at a lower cost.
Going by the innovations and advantages of the eNaira, and the greater understanding that the relaunch is expected to build, it is most likely that the eNaira will, in no distance time, be embraced to enhance financial inclusion further.
Abbas Badmus is with TechDigest Abuja and can be reached via abbasbadamasi946@gmail.com.
