Abstract

The cashless policy was introduced in Nigeria by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in December 2011 and was kick-started in January 2012. The main aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the application of the cashless policy on the sales performance of SMEs in Enugu metropolis. The specific objectives were to: ascertain the extent to which the use of Point of Sale (POS) systems increases the sales volume of SMEs in Enugu metropolis; examine the extent to which the adoption of mobile banking as a means of payment enhances sales volume of SMES in Enugu metropolis; and ascertain the extent to which the use of e-cash wallet enhances sales volume of SMEs in Enugu metropolis. Three null hypotheses which align with the research objectives were formulated to guide the study. The descriptive survey research design was adopted with a questionnaire as a data collection instrument. The survey involved 100 respondents who are staff of selected SMEs operating within Enugu metropolis. Results of the data analysis show that the use of Point of Sale systems has positively increased the sales volume of small and medium businesses in Enugu metropolis; the adoption of mobile banking as a means of payment has positively enhanced the sales volume of SMEs in Enugu metropolis; and the use of e-cash wallet has positively enhanced sales volume of SMEs in Enugu metropolis.