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Tag: Dipo Fatokun

  • CBN suspends withdrawal and lodgment charges

    CBN suspends withdrawal and lodgment charges

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has suspended indefinitely the withdrawal and deposit processing fees introduced recently under its cashless policy.

    A circular issued on Friday and signed by the Director, Banking and Payment Systems department of the CBN, Dipo Fatokun, directed all bank’s that had started implementing the processing fees which came into effect on April 1 to make refund to customers.

    The circular said the apex bank would now revert to the status quo ante, that is the existing policy prior to the announcement of the new policy as earlier implemented in Lagos, Ogun, Kano, Anambra, Rivers and the FCT.

    The old charges to be reverted to are – individual withdrawal/lodgment limits of N500,000 which will now attract processing fee of three per cent and zero for lodgment.

    Also corporate withdrawals/ lodgment limits of N3,000,000 will now attract five per cent processing fee for withdrawals and zero fees for lodgments.

    The CBN had issued two circulars in February and March this year directing banks to implement a new regime of processing fees on withdrawals and lodgments by depositors.

    The old circular titled: “Circular on nationwide implementation of the cashless policy,” read:

    “Charges for cash deposit by individuals are as follows: Less than N500,000, zero charge; from N500,000 to N1 million, 1.5 per cent; from N1 million to N5 million, two per cent charge; above N5 million, three per cent charge.”

    “Charges for cash withdrawal by individuals are as follows: Less than N500,000, zero charge; From N500,000 to N1 million, two per cent; from N1 million to N5 million, three per cent charge; above N5 million, 7.5 per cent charge.”

    “Charges for corporate cash deposit are as follow: Less than N3 million, zero charge; from N3 million to N10 million, two per cent; from N10 million to N40 million, three per cent; above N40 million, five per cent.”

    “Charges for corporate cash withdrawal are as follows: Less than N3 million, zero charge; from N3 million to N10 million, five per cent; from N10 million to N40 million, 7.5 per cent; above N40 million, 10 per cent.”

    “The new charges would take effect from April 1, 2017, in the existing cashless states (Lagos, Ogun, Kano, Abia, Anambra, Rivers and the FCT).”

  • CBN Extends BVN Registration for Nigerians in Diaspora

    CBN Extends BVN Registration for Nigerians in Diaspora

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has once again extended the registration and linkage of BVN of Nigerian bank customers in diaspora.

    Last year the CBN extended the exercise to 31 January 2016 but in a circular issued last night by the apex bank, it noted that it had observed through a survey the low percentage of registration of Nigerian Banks’ customers in diaspora which may be attributed to lack of accessibility to registration Centres and unavailability of registration Centres in some cities with large Nigerian populations.

    As a result of this development, the CBN has directed all Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) that BVN enrollment of Nigerian Banks’ customers in diaspora has been extended to 30th June 2016 to enable such customers complete the enrollment and links the BVN to their bank accounts.

    The circular signed by Dipo Fatokun, Director Banking and Payments Systems Department while listing existing registration Centres said: “plans are on to deploy more registration Centres for locations with high Nigerian population. Nigerian Banks’ customers are enjoined to seize the opportunity of this extension to register and link their BVN to their bank accounts,” the statement read.

     

     

  • CBN will curb internet fraud, says director 

    CBN will curb internet fraud, says director 

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will ensure that e-payment fraud is reduced,  CBN Director, Banking and Payments System Department,  ‘Dipo Fatokun, has said.

    Speaking during the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) Bi-Monthly Forum in Lagos he said the Payments System Vision 2020 launched in 2013, was meant to re-organise the National Payments Governance Structure and encourage more people to embrace e-payment.

    Fatokun, would represented by the CBN Deputy Director,  Banking and Payments System Department, Musa Jimoh, said  the project identified agriculture, smart cities, health, transportation, hotels, entertainment, government flow, education and Consumer Bill Payment and direct debits as focus areas.

    He explained that the absence of a unique identifier in the banking industry would have  negative consequences on the growth of e-payments . He said there was need to resolve the challenge that prompted CBN, in collaboration with the Bankers’ Committee to launch the Bank Verification Number (BVN) project. The project, he said, would help build confidence on the e-payment channels and enhance integrity of transactions.

    “The BVN initiative is aimed at protecting bank customers and further strengthening the Nigerian banking system by uniquely identifying all bank customers and acts as a stop-gap, prior to the full implementation of the National Identity Card system,” he said.

    Also, the CBN has mandated all Banks, Switches and Processors to comply with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCIDSS). It has conduct an oversight on compliance which showed that most banks had been certified.

    The certification lasts for one year, adding that banks are currently at various levels of re-certification. He explained that PCIDSS is a global compliance standard for any entity that stores, transmits or processes card payment data.

    CBN, Fatokun said, also directed banks to set up systems that will enable the automatic refund of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) dispense errors to customers. The regulator has also issued guidelines for card issuance and usage meant to provide   minimum   standards   and       requirements for the issuance and usage of payment cards in the country.

    “Its implementation enables issuing banks, other financial institution, processors and cards schemes upgrade and maintain  their card  operations  to  ensure  optimum  security,  efficiency, cost effectiveness and customer friendliness,” he said.

  • CBN reassures on financial inclusion strategy

    CBN reassures on financial inclusion strategy

    …Number of ‘unbanked’ adult population to drop by 20%

    The Central Bank of Nigeria said it intends to reduce the country’s unbanked population by 20 per cent before year 2020.

    The plan is part of the apex bank financial inclusion strategy aimed at ensuring greater participation in the nation’s financial sector.

    The percentage figure of Nigeria’s unbanked population currently stands at 46.3 per cent.

    The Director, Banking and Payments System Department, CBN, Mr. Dipo Fatokun, stated this on Saturday, while presenting a paper titled: “Mobile Money in Nigeria: Prospects, Opportunities and Challenges,” at the Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria, Ikeja District, meeting.

    He said CBN will work to ensure success of the strategy.

    According to him, a survey carried out in 2008 by an international agency, Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA), on access to financial services in the Nigeria revealed that banking penetration was relatively low with only 21 per cent of adult population in the country having access to banking services, while 74 per cent had never been banked.

    The remaining five percent, previously banked, in other words, had left the banking system, Fatokun added.

    Reasons adduced for lack of bank accounts by many are- proximity to financial service outlets, product complexity and cost of service.

    He said, “The concerns for financial inclusion are valid as no nation can progress and develop if majority of its population is under banked or has no access to financial services.

    ‘A good example is Kenya where it has been proved that a half percentage increase in their national Gross Domestic Product growth is attributable to mobile money transactions.

    “Indian policy makers too, have embraced the importance of mobile money as the best solution for financial inclusion and economic growth.

    “A study on the impact of financial access on poverty in the country carried by Economists, Robin Burgess and Rohini Pande estimated that one per cent increase in the number of rural locations banked; par capital reduced rural poverty by 0.42 per cent and increased economic productivity by 0.34 per cent.

    “With the above scenario in mind, and to promote financial inclusion, the CBN identified mobile telephony as one of the veritable channels through which the unbanked can be provided easy access to financial services at affordable cost.

    “The need to create an enabling environment for all participants saw the development of the Mobile Payments Regulatory Framework in 2009, to guide the industry players

    The overriding vision was to achieve a system that is nationally utilized and internationally recognized – a Nigerian system of mobile payments.”