- CBN plans to close bank accounts without BVN to clean up the sector and reduce fraud
- BVN is a unique identifier capturing biometric data used to verify customer identities and prevent fraud
- There are 24 commercial banks operating in Nigeria including Access, UBA, Zenith, and other financial institutions that require BVN
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced plans to close millions of bank accounts across various financial institutions that are not linked to a Bank Verification Number (BVN).
Blaise Ijebor, the CBN director of the Risk Management Department and Chief Risk Officer, who disclosed the plan at the Prembly Compliance Breakfast Dialogue on Thursday April 6, said the objective is to clean up the sector and reduce the growing incidence of fraud.
He added that the financial regulator was looking at commencing the exercise soon but did not give an indication of when the CBN would begin the clean up.
Why is CBN closing bank accounts without BVN
As of April 2, 2023, Banktransfer.com.ng’s analysis of the NIBSS website indicated that there were only 57.01 million registered BVN numbers out of the total 191.4 million bank accounts in the country, with 133.5 million active.
CBN’s Ijebor further detailed the importance of closing bank accounts without BVN and highlighted three areas where cybercriminals are exploiting vulnerabilities.
The first is the Tier-1 account, which allows customers to open an account with minimal documentation and is mostly targeted at the unbanked and rural population.
He said: “This account is dominated by digital banks or fintech firms, and often lacks BVN linkage, which makes it an easy entry point for hackers.”
“Secondly, some banks, especially digital ones, may not meet regulatory requirements, creating a second loophole for fraudulent activity.
“Lastly, hackers can exploit any vulnerability to gain access to bank accounts.” Ijebor mentioned that apex bank was working on improving agency banking and enabling agents to register BVN, which will help move Tier-1 accounts to Tier-2.
Good one there.
I hope CBN work as said in this article and also remember to tell Telecommunications and and all financial institutions sessions to strengthen all their network sessions that will Fastrack the digital and mobile banking system in The country.
Oh! My goodness!.This is a very good and clear issue that must be handled with mandate effect. I hope CBN will stop or close all bank account without BVN
No
After
Yeye country. So more than 10 years after introduction of BVN, CBN is still waking up to the realization that some accounts which do no have BVN are still running and functional. Shame on this country and all in government.
They are there as a cosmetic facade to meet the inflated ego of some bankers that they attracted many accounts as a false sign that they are effective and efficient. They stood on a false floor and the house of cards has caved in.
Thank you
u cannot operate account in Nigeria without bvn,so CBN stop disturbing us.if there is any bank workers should be responsible for that.
Very good CVN you trey
Any monthly payment the money
Yes I pay