Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso has explained that the bank is creating a pool for funds in dormant accounts because such accounts are more susceptible to fraudsters in Nigeria and funds in those accounts would be kept safe in the CBN custody.
He stated this during the 296th meeting of the apex bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). The MPC at the meeting, increase Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) by 50 basis points to 26.75 per cent.
Cardoso said the CBN will keep the funds and return it to the owners whenever they come for it, including the profit that accrues from such funds.
He pointed out that it was more likely for fraudsters to copy the identities of owners of dormant accounts and try to gain a hold of the system and grab depositors’ funds.
“That is a problem I think most money banks face. The policy and the directive is meant to ensure that all those monies come to the Central Bank for safe keeping and it is at zero cost to the beneficiaries. All that will happen is that the central bank will manage the money within our possession and when the rightful owner surfaces, the money is returned plus whatever income is accrued to you,” Cardoso added.
The CBN recently issued new guidelines to banks on dormant accounts where it stated that it will create and manage an account called the “Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund (UBTF) Pool Account” to hold unclaimed balances.
It said the account would allow for the investment of funds from dormant accounts (10 years and above) and unclaimed balances into Nigerian Treasury Bills (NTBs) and other government securities.
The guidelines stipulate that the principal and any accrued interest from these investments must be refunded to the beneficiaries within ten working days of receiving a request.
