The Managing Director of Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Mr. Hassan Bello, has stated that his organisation was experiencing some challenges with Heritage Bank’s corporate customers with reference to their Bank Verification Numbers (BVN).
He however, disclosed that NDIC had commenced the payment of insured amount of the bank’s depositors
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had on June 3, 2024, revoked the licence of Heritage Bank Plc with immediate effect, describing the action as a necessary step to safeguard depositors’ interest after the board and management of the bank failed to improve its financial performance, thereby posing a threat to financial stability.
In a goodwill message he presented in Abuja at the maiden annual conference of the Association of Capital Market Academics of Nigeria (ACMAN), Bello disclosed that the NDIC had already taken over the assets of the bank with the readiness to pay all the claimants – the depositors and creditors as specified by the law.
He revealed that the NDIC commenced the payment of insured amount to the bank’s customers three days after the CBN revoked its licence.
He said: “As you know, the Central Bank of Nigeria revoked the licence of Heritage Bank Limited in June and it was handed over to the NDIC for liquidation.
“The NDIC has already taken over the assets of the bank with the readiness to pay all the claimants – the depositors and creditors as specified by the law.
“We have commenced the payment of insured amount as early as June 6 and is currently ongoing. We have paid especially customers with BVN linked to their accounts.
“The little challenge we are experiencing is with corporate customers who are unable to use the BVN attached to their accounts because in most cases, the BVN attached is the BVN of the directors, and in most cases when you use that BVN to search, what you see is not the account of the corporate customer but the account of that director.
“So, it’s on this basis that we are urging those corporate customers to come forward and visit any of the NDIC offices nationwide so that they can complete the verification form or in the alternative, they can visit the corporation’s website, download the form, complete and submit it so that we can process your insured amount and pay.
“After that, we will continue with the payment of liquidation dividend, which is over and above the insured amount. We have already set the process in motion and we have already advertised for valuers that will value the assets and chattels of the bank so that we can realise them to begin the payment of the uninsured depositors accordingly.”
According to him, the mandate of the NDIC centres around deposit guarantee, bank supervision, failure resolution and bank liquidation
These mandates, he explained, were geared towards enhancing depositors’ confidence in the market, thereby contributing to financial system stability
Reflecting on this mandate, he stated that the NDIC had in April this year reviewed upwards, the maximum deposit insurance coverage levels, adding that this review was aimed at engendering confidence within the banking system thereby promoting financial system stability.
On crypto assets, he said they were real and had come to stay.
“Finally, it is real that crypto assets are here to stay. I, therefore, urge participants to deliberate and offer recommendations that will help us navigate the opportunities and mitigate the risks, identify and implement strategies that would strategically reposition our capital market,” he added.
Ndubuisi Francis
Follow us on:
