By Chinwendu Obienyi
Following recent regulatory framework established by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) targeted at takeover of billions of naira from dormant bank accounts in various commercial banks, for investment in treasury bills and other government securities, bank customers as well as shareholders have called on the apex bank to research more to contact the owners first.
According to them, the CBN has no business mopping up dormant accounts and should rather let the monies remain in the banks. The apex bank in its recently released guidelines on management of dormant accounts, unclaimed balances and other financial assets in banks and other financial institutions in Nigeria, explained the management procedures for monies trapped in dormant accounts, what the funds might be utilised for, awaiting customer refunds, compliance expectations, monitoring and evaluation, dispute resolution, and penalties for infractions.
The Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund (UBTF), with a substantial management committee for the appropriate administration of the money, will be established by the apex bank, according to the circular signed by the CBN’s financial policy and regulation department director, Chibuzo Efobi.
The document specified that eligible accounts are those with balances that have become dormant at financial institutions for at least 10 years.
According to the guideline, the affected financial assets will include dormant accounts, unclaimed balances and other assets in savings, current, term and domiciliary accounts. Also, financial assets, including those kept on cards and wallets as salary, wages, bonuses, or commissions, would be transferred to the UBTF Account Pool for CBN safe-keeping.
The guideline also detailed that funds received from a correspondent bank without sufficient details as to the rightful beneficiary and/or a recall of funds made to the remitting bank to which the Nigerian bank’s account had not been debited, a judgment debt for which the judgment creditor has not claimed the amount of judgment award; and any other deposits or financial assets that may be designated by CBN will also be taken into the custody of the apex bank.
Reacting to this development, the Bank Customers Association of Nigeria (BCAN) called on the CBN to tread softly as the removal of those monies from banks could result in lower deposits and cause banks (especially old generation banks) to collapse.
Speaking to Daily Sun via a telephone chat, the Chairman, BCAN, Dr Uju Ogubunka, said, “Even though the apex bank has said fraudsters are targeting these accounts, there is every need to contact the account owners before taking their monies. If they want to do a research in that area to find out details about some of these things and their staff are too busy, they can contract it out. So many people can do that kind of research for them to find out how many of these account owners that can be traced. By the way, if you are able to trace the owners and you are not comfortable with the accounts staying there, you can ask them to close the accounts so that they know they are the ones taking their money.
You do not just jump in because the accounts are dormant. You should also think about the implications. I do not think that fraudsters targeting these accounts is enough reason for the CBN to wade in. The money does not belong to CBN but rather to individuals or companies that own them. So I do not think that reason is acceptable”.
For his own part, the National Coordinator, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Boniface Okezie, this may cause some form of instability in the financial system.
“Those monies does not belong to CBN neither does it belong to the government. They should trace the owners of these monies, or the banks should publish the names of those dormant accounts for them to claim their money.
I know that the government is broke but they should find another avenue to make money. Even if they decide to take those monies, they have to ask the banks to lend the money to them after which they must pay interest. All this pen-robbery must stop. Nigeria is so corrupt”, Okezie said.