By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
More than 23,000 people have been refunded N82.2b from the N89.2 billion excess and illegal charges on bank customers which the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recovered in the first half of 2021 ending June 30 (H1 2021).
The refund was based on verified complaints, according to CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele, who made the disclosure at a CBN Fair in Calabar where he stressed that bank customers have rights to redress and should report infractions.
“Oftentimes, there have been sundry issues. Once we get these complaints, we investigate and if the issues are found to be true, we make sure refunds are made. As of June 2021, we have facilitated the refund of N82.2 billion to customers.
“As of June 2021, not less than 23,536 complaints were received from which N82.2 billion was refunded,” said Emefiele, represented by acting CBN Corporate Communications Director, Osita Nwanisobi, as reported by The Guardian (Nigeria).
Emefiele urged bank customers to provide factual information to enable fact-checking by the CBN, which he said is also doing intervention in 37 sectors, among them credit, health, agriculture, real, and electricity market stabilisation.
“During the heat of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, we realised that the global economy was shut down, with families and businesses affected.
“The first thing the CBN did was to roll out some interventions to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on livelihoods and businesses. It was a health crisis, and we needed to up our game in terms of health infrastructure.”
Emefiele explained that CBN Fair “is to create awareness on our policies, intervention, and programmes, as well as getting feedback from Nigerians on how they are impacting their lives and businesses.”
He enthused that with the establishment of SANEF Agent Bankers, about 95 per cent of Nigerians would have a bank account opened by 2023, but advised customers to demand ‘Agent Certificate’ from anyone who claims agentship.
CBN recovers N89b excess bank charges in H1 2021
Up to N89.2 billion excess and illegal charges on bank customers was recovered by the CBN in H1 2021 but the regulator affirms that the stability of the financial system, per Vanguard reporting from the same event in Calabar.
“We want Nigerians to know that we carry out ‘banking examinations’ and the results show that our banks are in very good condition and our financial system is stable, resilient, safe and sound,” Emefiele said.
“This sensitisation is part of ways to engage the people to understand how our polices, programmes and interventions are affecting them and as well as create a veritable platform to discuss and understand their challenges through their responses and feedbacks.
“What we do is that whenever we get [customer] complaints, they are thoroughly investigated, if they are found to be true, the CBN makes sure that these customers are properly refunded and we have so far recovered N89 billion.”
CBN returns N60b excess charges to bank customers
In February 2020, the CBN announced that it recovered over N60 billion excess charges bank imposed on customers and returned the money to the owners.
It said the amount was recovered following complaints by 13,000 customers over excess and illegal charges on their accounts by banks.
CBN Deputy Director, Consumer Protection Department, Chinyere Obilor, disclosed this at a sensitisation forum in Owerri.
“The Department received over 13,000 complaints from aggrieved members of the banking public and recovered over N60 billion excess bank charges and returned the same to the rightful owners”, she said, reported by Vanguard.
Some of the banks were sanctioned for unethical practices, she added, and urged the banking public to promptly report any unethical practice by commercial banks to the CBN for “immediate action”.
