Nigeria hits new record with 60.49m BVN registrations

By Sodiq Adelakun

The number of registrations for the Bank Verification Number (BVN) in Nigeria has surged to 60.49 million as of January 26, 2024, according to data released by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS).

This indicates that 291,232 new BVNs were issued by banks in the past two weeks. Previously, as of January 10, 2024, the BVN database recorded 60.2 million registrations.

The recent announcement by the Central Bank of Nigeria that all bank accounts without BVN would be frozen from April 2024 has prompted Nigerians without BVN to rush and obtain the number.

In addition, the apex bank has instructed various financial institutions, including commercial, merchant, non-interest, payment service banks, and mobile money operators, to electronically revalidate the BVN or National Identification Number (NIN) attached to all accounts and wallets by January 31, 2024.

The BVN database has been growing but slowly. At the end of 2022, the BVN database stood at 56.5 million after a total of 4.8 million new registrations were recorded in the year. However, data released towards the end of last year showed that the database only increased by about 3.4 million in the year.

According to NIBSS, active bank accounts in the country stood at 133.5 million as of December 2021. While data for 2022 and 2023 has yet to be released, the figures are expected to be higher than that of 2021, which showed that there is still a wide gap between the registered BVN and the number of bank accounts.

However, industry analysts believe that the difference may not be much because multiple accounts can be linked to a single BVN.

According to Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA) Access to Financial Services in Nigeria 2023 Survey report, 5 percent (3 million) of banked adults do not have a BVN or NIN.

The CBN in December last year announced that it would freeze accounts without a BVN and National Identification Number (NIN) from April 2024.

In a circular by the apex bank, it instructed banks to place a “Post no Debit” restriction – which prevents customers from making withdrawals, transfers, or any other debits “for all existing Tier-1 accounts/wallets without BVN or NIN.”

“Effective immediately, any unfunded account/wallet shall be placed on ‘Post No Debit or Credit’ until the new process is satisfied. Effective March 1, 2024, all funded accounts or wallets shall be placed on ‘Post No Debit or Credit’ and no further transactions permitted,” the circular by the CBN Director of Payments System Management Department Chibuzo Efobi, and the Director of Financial Policy and Regulation Department Haruna Mustapha read in part.