E-Financial
Uproar, Chaos as Banks Block Accounts Due to BVN
At least five million bank accounts were deactivated by Deposit Money Banks operating in the country on Saturday night following the October 31, 2015 deadline set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for bank customers to register and obtain their Bank Verification Numbers, according to Punch Newspapers.
Elsewhere, the Vanguard Newspapers reported that millions of others customers were denied access to their bank accounts due to failure of banks to link their accounts to their Biometric Verification Number (BVN).
The affected customers were, among other things, barred from withdrawing cash and transferring funds through Automated Teller Machines, Internet banking platforms and over-the-counter in the banking halls.
According to Punch, the development created chaos in the banking halls across the country on Monday as angry customers besieged several branches to get their suspended accounts reactivated.
Long queues were seen in various banking halls when one our correspondents visited some branches in Lagos.
Similar situations were recorded in Abuja, Port Harcourt and other major cities across the country.
Findings showed that a significant number of the five million customers whose accounts were suspended had obtained their BVNs but failed to link it with their account numbers.
Branches of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Access Bank Plc visited in Surulere, Yaba, Isolo and Oshodi in Lagos all had long queues of customers filling forms to verify their BVNs.
Majority of the customers expressed anger as they filled the verification forms given to them by bank officials.
Punch said that , some of the customers, who had obtained the BVNs but failed to link them up with the account numbers, had their accounts reactivated immediately.
But Vanguard reported that somebank customers that had obtained the BVN from one bank, and had submitted it to other banks where they also have accounts, discovered that their accounts in the other banks had been blocked.
According to Mr. Stanley Chima, “I had done my BVN through Access Bank, and submitted it to UBA last week. This morning I discovered the UBA account has been blocked, because it was yet to be linked to my BVN.”
He was one of the many customers that besieged banks’ branches across the country with similar problems.
A bank staff who spoke to Vanguard on condition of anonymity however blamed bank customers for the problem. She said that many customers did not submit their BVN for linkage to other accounts until last week, and the result was piles of BVN linkage request that could not be concluded as at the October 31st deadline.
CBN in a statement said that with the expiration of the October 31 enrolment deadline, the CBN has directed that bank accounts of Nigeria residents without the BVN would henceforth be operated as ‘No customer initiated debit accounts until the account holders obtain and attach the BVNs to the accounts.
Mr. Ibrahim Mu’azu, director, Corporate Communications, CBN, explained that the extension was to enable customers in the Diaspora to complete the enrolment as well as link the BVN to their respective accounts.
“However, ‘No customer initiated debit accounts until the account holders obtain and attach the BVNs to the accounts.
“This means that a customer may not be allowed to withdraw money from his or her account until the BVN has been acquired and linked to the account.”
The statement clarified that accounts of Nigeria residents without the BVN would continue to receive cash and electronic credit inflows, and would neither be deactivated nor confiscated.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has commenced the implementation of a fully electronic registration system for capital market operators, marking a major milestone in its digital transformation drive aimed at improving regulatory efficiency, reducing processing time and strengthening oversight of Nigeria’s capital market.
The new electronic registration (e-Registration) platform, deployed through the Commission’s ePortal, allows designated regulatory services to be completed entirely online, eliminating manual processes for services covered in the current phase.
The initiative comes as the SEC intensifies reforms to modernise the Nigerian capital market, enhance the ease of doing business and leverage technology to improve service delivery to market participants.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Commission said Capital Market Operators (CMOs) can now complete designated post-registration processes electronically, from application submission and regulatory review to approvals and the communication of regulatory decisions.
According to the regulator, the platform is designed to simplify interactions between operators and the Commission, reduce administrative bottlenecks, shorten processing timelines and give applicants real-time visibility into the status of their applications.
The SEC said the transition to a fully digital registration process would also improve operational efficiency by introducing standardised workflows, electronic documentation, secure digital record management and stronger audit trails, while enhancing regulatory oversight.
“The new platform represents a major step towards creating a seamless digital regulatory ecosystem that enhances operational efficiency while strengthening regulatory effectiveness,” the Commission stated.
Beyond improving efficiency, the regulator said the platform would reinforce the integrity of regulatory processes by minimising delays associated with paper-based documentation and improving the quality of regulatory data used for supervision and decision-making.
It added that the digital system would provide a stronger foundation for regulatory analytics and future technology-driven innovations aimed at enhancing market oversight.
The Commission explained that the implementation is being rolled out in phases to ensure a smooth transition for market participants while safeguarding the stability and integrity of regulatory processes.
For now, the e-Registration platform is limited to post-registration services for existing Capital Market Operators.
entrants seeking registration in the Nigerian capital market are not yet covered under the current phase, adding that electronic processing for new registrations will be introduced at a later date.
The Commission urged all licensed operators to familiarise themselves with the new platform and comply with implementation timelines to ensure a seamless migration to the digital system.
The latest move forms part of the SEC’s broader reform agenda to modernise market infrastructure, improve transparency and strengthen investor confidence as Nigeria seeks to deepen its capital market and enhance its competitiveness in the global financial system.
Market observers believe the digital registration initiative is expected to reduce compliance costs, improve regulatory turnaround time and support a more efficient operating environment for licensed operators, while reinforcing the Commission’s push towards a technology-driven capital market ecosystem.
Elon Musk’s social media company X, formerly known as Twitter, launched its own bank account-like product where users can send money to one another.
The service, known as X Money, is not a new bank.
X Money is using technology and banking services provided by Cross River Bank, and branding that backbone as X Money.
It is common for new financial companies to use a traditional bank’s backbone to launch its services, as chartering a new bank is a timely and costly process.
Currently X Money is invite only, and users will receive a “X”-branded Visa debit card that is useable at any ATM.
Users of X will be able to send money to other X users in real-time, the company said. Invitations are only available to X’s paying members presently
In order to attract customers, X Money is offering a 6% yield on deposits and 3% cashback on eligible purchases.
In order to earn the 6% yield, a customer would need to deposit at least $1,000 into an account.
Customers would also have to be signed up for X’s premium services, which is at least $8 a month. It would require at least a deposit of $1,600 in order to cover X’s premium services cost.
Musk has long talked about turning X into an “everything app” that would include financial services.
Musk has his origins in financial services, creating one of the first online banks under the brand X.com. That company was later bought and merged into what is now known as PayPal.
It’s still early for X Money, but the company is entering into a competitive market, dominated by PayPal’s Venmo money transfer service and other peer-to-peer money transfer services like Zelle and Cash App.
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) imposed N430 million in penalties on financial institutions in 2025 over delays in resolving customer complaints and failure to comply with its directives, underscoring a tougher regulatory stance on consumer protection in the banking sector.
The sanctions were disclosed in the apex bank’s 2025 Annual Report, which showed that 21 penalties worth N430 million were imposed on financial institutions during the review period for infractions linked to complaints management.
According to Nairametrics, the report stated that the affected institutions were sanctioned for “delays in resolving customer complaints to failure to comply with the Bank’s directives.”
The report read, “the Bank imposed 21 penalties on financial institutions to the tune of N430.00 million, for infractions ranging from delays in resolving customer complaints to failure to comply with the Bank’s directives.”
The latest enforcement action comes as the CBN recorded a rise in the number of complaints lodged by users of financial services, suggesting greater reliance on the regulator’s consumer protection framework.
According to the report, the CBN received 23,129 complaints from consumers of financial services in 2025, representing a 10.53% increase from the 20,925 complaints recorded in 2024.
The apex bank attributed the increase to growing public awareness and stronger confidence in its complaint resolution process rather than a deterioration in banking services.
The report stated, “The Bank received a total of 23,129 complaints from consumers of financial services in 2025, a rise of 10.53%, above the 20,925 in 2024. The trend reflected increased awareness and improved confidence in the Bank’s consumer complaint resolution process.”
It added that 18,824 complaints were successfully resolved during the year, representing a 9.36% increase from the 17,213 complaints resolved in 2024.
The report also showed a sharp increase in the value of claims handled by the regulator.
Claims denominated in local currency rose to N40.61 billion in 2025 from N17.13 billion a year earlier, while foreign currency claims climbed to $344.2 million from $1.06 million.
consumers recovered N19.12 billion and $329.3 million in refunds during the year, compared with N9.66 billion and $0.67 million refunded in 2024.
Beyond the N430 million sanctions relating to customer complaints, the CBN disclosed that it imposed another 11 penalties worth N1.26 billion on financial institutions for regulatory breaches and failure to respond to regulatory queries.
The report indicates that complaints management formed part of a wider overhaul of the CBN’s supervisory and market conduct framework in 2025.
In 2022, the CBN issued a guide on how aggrieved customers can complain about financial institutions such as commercial banks.
The regulator established a dedicated Compliance Department to strengthen oversight of financial crime, market conduct, complaints management, advertising standards, cybersecurity, data protection and corporate governance across CBN-regulated institutions.
Olayemi Cardoso, governor, CBN, recently said that the CBN and deposit money banks are reviewing excessive transaction alerts and customer charges amid complaints from bank users over confusing debit notifications and deductions.
Cardoso said the apex bank had set up a quarterly engagement structure involving its consumer protection team, deposit money banks and the top 10 microfinance banks to address unresolved customer complaints.
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