PalmPay, a fintech innovator whose majority stake is owned by Transsion, has announced it has obtained a compliance status on obligations in accordance with the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation. This has been issued confirming PalmPay’s implementation of all statutory requirements.

As a data controller, PalmPay engaged a Data Protection Compliance Organisation (DPCO) licensed by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), to perform a data protection audit. The DPCO has reviewed PalmPay’s ability to provide secure financial information, personnel data and information entrusted to third parties. Being NDPR compliant indicates that PalmPay meets the high requirements of information security.

With the significant growth in the internet and digital economy, the use of information raises serious concerns about privacy and data protection. Any organisation that wishes to operate effectively must ensure the security of its information by implementing a data protection plan.

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) is statutorily mandated by the NITDA Act of 2007 to develop regulations for electronic governance and monitoring of the use of information technology and electronic data. In response to concerns about personal data privacy and protection, as well as the serious consequences of leaving personal data processing unregulated, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) issued the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR).

The NDPR makes provisions for the rights of data subjects, the obligations of data controllers and data processors, transfer of data to a foreign territory amongst others.

“Data protection in the payments industry today is more important than ever, where the use of digital payments is rapidly increasing, and transfers between individuals have significantly changed. Personal activities or individual behaviours may be tracked using the associated data. The security and safety of funds and data will continue to be priority for PalmPay.” said Chika Nwosu, Managing Director of PalmPay.

“Customer first is one of our core values, and NDPR compliance status demonstrates how serious we are about it. We remain committed to improving data protection to meet our privacy responsibilities to our users, and merchants.”