The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) now allows next-of-kin, legal representatives or beneficial owners to claim balances from dormant accounts.
In a recent release, the CBN clarified that next-of-kin can submit applications to financial institutions to retrieve unclaimed funds.
These applications must include legal proof of title, and for corporate entities, details of directors and authorized signatories.
The CBN has the authority to manage dormant accounts and unclaimed funds, holding and managing these funds in trust for account holders.
This process will be overseen by a dedicated office under the supervision of a management committee.
Unclaimed funds will be placed into the Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund (UBTF) Pool Account and invested in treasury bills and other securities.
Beneficiaries will receive the principal and any accrued interest within 10 working days of a reclaim request.
To reclaim funds, account owners must visit financial institutions to complete a reclaim form and provide evidence of ownership, a sworn affidavit, and valid ID.
Financial institutions are required to verify the claim and forward it to the CBN within 10 days.
Upon receiving the request, the CBN will process the refund within 10 days.
If a financial institution’s license is revoked, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) will manage dormant accounts.
The policy also applies to balances in dormant domiciliary accounts but not to active domiciliary accounts.
An inactive account is defined as one with no customer-initiated transactions for 6 to 12 months, while a dormant account is inactive for one year or more.
Unclaimed balances are those that have been dormant for at least 10 years.
Eligible accounts include current, savings, term deposits, domiciliary accounts, deposits for shares, prepaid card accounts, government-owned accounts, and more.
Accounts under litigation, investigation, or encumbrance are exempt.
