Nearpays Strengthens Contactless Payment Security with Mandatory PIN, Fraud Monitoring

As Nigeria’s financial services industry moves towards wider adoption of contactless payments, Nearpays has outlined a series of security measures designed to protect merchants and consumers against fraud, unauthorised transactions and the exposure of sensitive financial information.

The financial technology company said its SoftPOS payment platform incorporates mandatory personal identification number (PIN) authentication, transaction monitoring and additional application-level safeguards intended to strengthen the security of smartphone-based payment acceptance.

The measures come amid renewed attention to payment security following the introduction of Google Wallet and Google Pay in Nigeria, which allows eligible cardholders to make supported transactions using compatible Android devices.

Victor Daniyan, chief executive officer of Nearpays, said the company’s security strategy is focused on ensuring that the convenience of contactless payments does not come at the expense of consumer protection.

“At Nearpays, we have made security a priority. Card information is not stored on the device, and transactions are processed through a verified channel,” Daniyan said. “This is one of the reasons we partnered with Visa.”

He said the company continues to strengthen its security infrastructure as contactless payment adoption expands.

The security concerns are particularly relevant in Nigeria, where increasing reliance on electronic transactions has heightened the need for effective fraud prevention and financial data protection.

According to a 2025 report by Agusto & Co., Nigerian financial institutions recorded N52.3 billion in fraud-related losses in 2024, highlighting the financial implications of weaknesses across the broader banking and payments ecosystem.

The figure covers financial sector fraud generally and does not represent losses specifically attributable to contactless payments.

Mercy Ogoji, chief operating officer of Nearpays, said the company has adopted authentication requirements designed to reduce the possibility of unauthorised transactions.

“Our SoftPOS solution requires PIN authentication for every transaction, adding an extra layer of protection against fraud and unauthorised payments,” Ogoji said.

She explained that Nearpays also operates a fraud-monitoring module intended to identify suspicious transaction activity, supported by the company’s technology and security partners.

Nigeria’s regulatory framework already provides safeguards for contactless transactions.

Under guidelines issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in June 2023, contactless payments without additional verification are subject to a N15,000 single-transaction limit and a N50,000 daily cumulative limit.

Transactions exceeding those thresholds require appropriate verification and authorisation, while participating financial institutions and payment service providers are expected to implement relevant risk management controls.

The regulatory provisions are intended to encourage innovation while addressing risks associated with emerging payment technologies.

Mfonobong Ekott, chief technology officer of Nearpays, said the company has introduced technical safeguards to reduce the exposure of sensitive information during payment processing.

“Our SoftPOS app also includes safeguards designed to prevent users from running other software or taking screenshots while a transaction is being processed,” Ekott said.

“We have implemented firewall protection and Microsoft Azure Sentinel for security monitoring.”

According to the company, these measures form part of a broader security architecture that includes fraud detection and the protection of payment information during transaction processing.

With more consumers gaining access to contactless payment services, payment providers face the challenge of balancing faster transactions with the security standards needed to sustain confidence in Nigeria’s digital financial system.