CBN set to mop up dormant account balances, unclaimed funds
By David Awoyemi
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to mop up funds in accounts that have been dormant for up to 10 years into a trust fund account.
This was disclosed recently in the released exposure draft of guidelines signed by the Director of Financial Policy and Regulation Department of the Apex bank, Mr Chibuzo Ofobi on the Management of Dormant Accounts, Unclaimed Balances and Other Financial Assets in Banks and Other Financial Institutions across the country.
The Central Bank further explained that any bank or financial institution that contravenes any provision of the new guidelines would attract a penalty of not less than N2,000,000, and also added that failure to comply with CBN’s directive in respect of any infraction would attract a further penalty of N200,000 daily until the directive is complied with or as may be determined by CBN.
Furthermore, the draft states that banks and other financial institutions are expected to transfer all unclaimed funds into an unclaimed balances trust fund pool account which will be domiciled at the CBN.
The Apex bank added that the balances would be invested in government securities such as Treasury Bills and would be returned to the beneficiaries not later than 10 days of notice.
However, the CBN calls for inputs from citizens and stakeholders.
Meanwhile, “The Central Bank of Nigeria shall open and maintain an account earmarked for the purpose of warehousing unclaimed balances in eligible accounts, which the account shall be called ‘Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund Pool Account.’
Whereby, the CBN also said that it would publish an annual list of the owners of the unclaimed balances that had been transferred to the pool account as well as the procedure for reclaim of warehoused funds.
The eligible accounts and financial assets are current, savings and term deposits in local currency; domiciliary accounts; deposits towards the purchase of shares and mutual investments; prepaid card accounts and wallets; proceeds of uncleared and unpresented financial instruments belonging to customers or non-customers of FIs; unclaimed salaries and wages, commissions, and bonuses.
Others include proceeds of stale local and/or foreign currency drafts not presented for payment by beneficiaries; 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 has not been debited and a judgment debt for which the judgment creditor has not claimed the amount of judgment award.
