OPay: Nigerian police and security service investigate fake claim about company shutdown
Nigerian fintech company OPay said that Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) and the police are investigating the spread of a false message claiming that the platform was allegedly shutting down in the country. The company stressed that its services continue to operate as usual.
As Premium Times Nigeria reports, a post circulated on social media claiming that OPay would cease operations on September 1 and stop processing transactions until further notice. The authors of the post also urged customers to withdraw their funds from the platform as soon as possible.
The company denied the message
OPay’s Chief Operating and Technology Officer, Dotun Adekunle, called the message false. According to him, the company has not made a decision to cease operations in Nigeria or suspend its activities indefinitely.
Adekunle noted that the false post said OPay would close on September 1, but as of the following day, the company continued operating. He also said that the Central Bank of Nigeria had identified the circulated message as fake news.
The OPay representative urged customers not to make financial decisions based on unverified messages on social media or messaging apps. According to him, false information about a financial institution can cause concern and undermine trust in digital payments.
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Investigation and court case
OPay’s Chief Legal Officer, Akinfolabi Moses, said the company had contacted regulatory, security, and law enforcement authorities and provided them with materials to establish the source and circumstances of the message’s dissemination. According to him, the DSS, the police, and other relevant agencies are conducting an investigation.
OPay also said it had initiated legal action against individuals whom the company considers responsible for creating and spreading the false information. Moses said that at least one case is already before a court.
Reaction from the payments industry
Olalekan Disu, financial secretary of the Association of Licensed Mobile Payment Operators, said that false reports about a major payment operator could weaken confidence in Nigeria’s digital payment system. He urged customers to verify information through official company and regulator channels before making decisions concerning their funds.
OPay has operated in Nigeria since 2018 and provides payment, savings, lending, and other financial services as a mobile money operator.
