In an ongoing dedication to safeguard customers of cost providers, foster belief in the usage of cost accounts, and facilitate real-time instantaneous transfers, the Central Financial institution of CEMAC Member States (Cameroon, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Central African Republic, and the Republic of the Congo), has just lately issued a Round Letter outlining the method of reclaiming funds erroneously transferred via Cost Service Suppliers (PSP) within the CEMAC zone.
This Round Letter introduces extra obligations for cost service suppliers, aiming to simplify the beforehand advanced process for looking for restitution of funds despatched to the incorrect recipient, whether or not mistakenly or not.
Beforehand, the method to reclaim funds erroneously transferred required the sender to report the difficulty to the cost service supplier to freeze the account and after that receive a court docket order earlier than the frozen funds could possibly be launched. This typically left the incorrect recipient with the power to swiftly withdraw the mistakenly transferred sums, leaving the sender with no fast recourse.
The Round Letter introduces an revolutionary strategy to reporting inaccurate or fraudulent transactions and establishes a extra environment friendly out-of-court process for recovering funds. This replace is designed to enhance consumer protection, bolster confidence in cost providers, and make sure the irrevocability of instantaneous cost orders throughout the CEMAC zone.
I- New Obligations for Cost Service Suppliers
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Telephony-based cost service suppliers should create a devoted menu on their USSD System or Cellular Functions for requesting the restitution of funds transferred to an unintended recipient.
- Telephony-based cost service suppliers should chorus from releasing the sums credited to the recipient’s account till 5 (5) minutes after the credit score notification.
II- Restitution Process
1. Initiating the Restitution Request
2. Freezing and Informing
Upon receiving the restitution request, the telephony-based cost providers supplier and account holder of the unintended recipient should instantly freeze, immobilize, and make unavailable the disputed funds. They need to additionally inform the sender of the restitution request.
3. Acceptance of Restitution
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If the unintended recipient accepts the restitution request, the request turns into a cost order, which the unintended recipient’s telephony-based cost providers supplier should promptly execute.
- Absence of a response inside 24 hours (transfers and service provider funds) or 48 hours (different transfers) implies acceptance and triggers the return of funds to the ordering/requesting celebration.
4. Dispute Decision
In case of disputes, the funds stay frozen, and the sender might provoke authorized motion. Notification of refusal to return the funds serves as proof or supporting documentation for potential authorized actions.
Help to Cost Service Suppliers
Our staff can help Cost Service Suppliers with reviewing and modifying their basic phrases and situations of the cardholder contracts and service provider/acceptance contracts for his or her cost playing cards or digital wallets to include the process for requesting the restitution of erroneously transferred funds.
