CBN has ordered geo-tagging of PoS terminals - what does this mean for your safety?

In a new directive to operators, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has ordered that all Point of Sale (PoS) terminals in the country must be geo-tagged within 60 days.

The instruction is contained in a statement by the CBN dated August 26, 2025, in which the apex bank described the move as a measure to curb fraud and strengthen oversight of digital payment platforms.

It also serves as part of a broader plan to modernise Nigeria's payment system, improve consumer protection, and ensure that digital financial transactions are secure and fully traceable.

“This initiative is designed to ensure that all PoS terminals are traceable and that transactions are secure. Terminals operating outside their registered location will be flagged, and non-compliant devices will be deactivated,” the statement read in part.

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The CBN warned that non-compliant terminals will no longer be allowed to operate from the deadline date of October 20, 2025.

The bank said the newly deployed PoS will come with native geolocation features and double-frequency GPS receivers for accurate tracking.

At the start of every transaction, each PoS device is required to capture and transmit its location. Any activity beyond a 10-meter radius of the registered merchant address will be automatically flagged.

Following this directive, major banks and fintech companies, such as OPay, PalmPay, and Moniepoint, are expected to register each terminal with a payment aggregator and provide precise merchant coordinates.

For the uninitiated, geo-tagging is the process of adding geographic data, such as latitude and longitude, to digital content like websites, videos, or photos.

With this, such content can be identified with great accuracy and can be automatically embedded by smartphones, used for social media check-ins, or manually added using digital maps.

It's useful for tracking, marketing, and providing location-based information to users. This is where the CBN geo-tagging of PoS becomes very crucial.

The apex bank explained that the measure will help eliminate “ghost” or cloned terminals and enable real-time monitoring of transactions.

In recent times, PoS terminals have provided a gateway for criminal elements to engage in unscrupulous activities, ranging from ransom-taking by kidnappers to unauthorized withdrawals via ATM cards to voluntary fund transfers induced by deceit and terrorism financing.

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These criminal acts often succeed due to a lack of bandwidth among various institutions to ensure real-time reporting and tracking. However, as the CBN has now implemented measures to monitor PoS transactions in real-time, the illegal acts typically committed over these terminals may find it difficult to escape the watchful eyes of the authorities.

While this measure may not be a silver bullet, it signals a strong determination from the CBN to curb fraud and illicit financial flows. If properly coordinated, it could also aid the police in carrying out timely arrests where infractions have been committed.