As the expiration of the November 3 deadline for all account holders to obtain Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) ended on Friday, compilation of accounts without BVN has started in banks.
Deposit Money Banks, are carrying out the exercise sequel to the order of the Federal High Court in Abuja and may soon publish the list in newspapers in line with the directive of the court.
According to bank executives, the list after compilations will also be sent to the Federal Government through the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Recall that the court presided over by Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, had on October 17, ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the 19 commercial banks in the country, to reveal all accounts in their custody and the balances in such accounts.
The ruling was as a result of an ex parte motion, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) filed on behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Justice Dimgba had directed that banks should disclose the details of all such accounts, their owners and their proceeds in their affidavit of compliance deposed to by their Chief Compliance Officers.
He had also given an interim order mandating banks to freeze all BVN-less accounts by denying “all outward payments, operations or transactions,” into such accounts pending the hearing of the substantive application seeking the forfeiture of the balances in the accounts to the Federal Government.
Further on the matter, the court asked banks to also disclose “any investments made with funds from these accounts without BVN in any products.”
The investments include “fixed/term deposits and their liquidation and interest incurred, bank acceptances, commercial papers and any other relevant information related to the transaction made on the accounts.”
The CBN and the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System PLC were as well asked “to validate the information contained in the affidavit of compliance/disclosure filed by the respective 19 banks” within seven days from the date of service of the orders on them.
Defendants in the case are Access Bank PLC, Citibank Nigeria, Diamond Bank PLC, Ecobank Nigeria, Fidelity Bank of Nigeria PLC, First Bank of Nigeria, First City Monument Bank PLC, Guaranty Trust Bank PLC and Heritage Bank PLC.
Others are Keystone Bank, Skye Bank PLC, Stanbic IBTC Bank PLC, Union Bank of Nigeria PLC, United Bank for Africa PLC, Unity Bank PLC, Wema Bank PLC, Zenith Bank PLC and the CBN.
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