The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has given official backing to Nigeria’s pioneer Bank Neutral Cash Bub (BNCH), a groundbreaking initiative designed to transform cash management as well as reduce risks and improve efficiency across the financial system.

The maiden cash hub, which was founded and promoted by Bankers Warehouse (BW) Limited, was unveiled yesterday at Mile 12 International Market in Lagos.

The facility will serve as a secure point where traders, retailers and individuals can deposit cash directly into their bank accounts or wallets, irrespective of the financial institution, without the need to travel long distances to bank branches.

Speaking at the launch, the Deputy Director of the CBN’s Currency Operations and Branch Management Department, Stella Gana, described the hub as the beginning of a new chapter in Nigeria’s financial system.

She noted that while digital payments are expanding, cash remains vital to markets, retail centres, rural communities and the informal economy, making secure and efficient cash management indispensable.

“Managing cash has its costs, complexity and risks. People have been attacked while moving cash from markets to banks, and this is one of the reasons the CBN worked with banks, cash-in-transit and processing companies to establish this solution.

“The BNCH is a shared platform to receive, sort, store and distribute cash on behalf of multiple banks, reducing risks and costs for everyone. With Mile 12 as the inaugural location, this milestone demonstrates what is possible when we work together to address shared challenges,” Gana stated.

The Chairman of Bankers Warehouse, Paul Kokoricha, hailed the development as a vision whose time has come, crediting the transformational leadership of the Federal Government and the CBN for driving it.

“This marks the beginning of a journey of providing digital infrastructure to achieve financial inclusion, efficiency and stability in our financial system,” he said, adding that Mile 12 was chosen as the pilot site because it exemplifies Nigeria’s entrepreneurial spirit.

Also, the Managing Director of BW, Lloyd Onaghinon, explained that the hub represents both innovation and collaboration. He said: “This is not just the maiden bank-neutral cash hub in Nigeria but the first-of-its-kind in sub-Saharan Africa. From inception, our focus has been safety. We started with solving the risks around moving cash on the streets, then built systems to process, verify and secure it. Today, with the support of the CBN, banks, switches and traders, we are delivering real-time transactions that protect everyone in the cash ecosystem.”

Adding his voice, the founder of BW, Victor Hammond, who first envisioned the project years ago, revealed that the hub was delayed for several years but had finally taken off following persistent demand from market leaders. He disclosed plans to establish 200 similar hubs across the country within 18 months.

“There will be no part of the country that will not be banked in another two years. Every part of Nigeria will have access to bank-neutral hubs, starting from marketplaces and expanding to cities,” Hammond said. (The Guardian)