The number of Bank Verification Number (BVN) account holders placed on the watchlist for fraud-related activity increased to 7,552, 25 percent in nine months, indicating rising levels of fraud in the financial system. Embossed.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said the number was 6,045 as of last June. However, the number increased by 1,505 to 7,552 in less than a year.
This was announced yesterday by Musa Jimoh, Director of the Payment Systems Management Department of the apex bank, at the 34th Annual Financial Correspondents and Business Editors Seminar in Calabar, Cross River State.
Jimoh, the department’s deputy director, was represented by Adefuye Adeyemi, who stated categorically that people under investigation for various fraud cases risk being shut out of the financial system.
In his opening remark, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed that the total BVN enrollment had increased to 57.43 million as of March 31, 2023. He added that the BVN is supporting the development of credit profiles for depositors and improving access to credit.
Emefiele, represented by the Director of Monetary Policy, Dr. Hassan Mahmud, said BVN has continued to feature in the bank’s know your customer (KYC) requirements as part of the plan to ease constraints associated with poor identification of bank customers.
According to him, BVN has also helped the industry track, identify and investigate fraudulent financial transactions. However, it has not been all rosy implementing digital payment. However, Emefiele said as weak social infrastructure becomes a significant challenge. He explained;
“Effective operation of payment platforms is highly reliant on stable telecommunication networks and power infrastructure. Unfortunately, these are currently not optimal in Nigeria, thus, impacting the stability and resilience of the payments system,”
Emefiele highlighted the nefarious activities of unlicensed entities in the payment value chain. He added:
“Some entities have continued to exploit access to information technology to engage in regulated activities without the appropriate licenses and authorization. The actions of fraudsters continue to threaten the resilience of payment platforms. Furthermore, these activities impact the confidence of the public.
“However, the collaborative effort between the Central Bank of Nigeria and other players in the industry is helping to curtail the nefarious activities of these fraudsters.”
Additionally,
Emefiele hinted that the CBN has rolled out steps to stem the tide in response to the challenges. He said one of the initiatives is setting up the Nigeria Electronic Fraud Forum (NeFF), which consists of all relevant stakeholders, to proactively address challenges and safeguard the integrity of the e-payment channels.
In addition, he maintained that with some of the initiatives introduced so far, the CBN had demonstrated irrevocable commitment to ensuring the stability and safety of the Nigerian payment system. He stated:
“Accordingly, we shall continue to deepen our oversight of the activities of operators in the payments system as well as ensure full compliance with regulations. In this regard, examiners and supervisors would continue to ensure that services delivered by participants meet required security standards.
“The bank will also continue to adopt a collaborative approach to achieve minimal cybersecurity threats in the payments system. A holistic mechanism for addressing cybersecurity threats requires policy and operational actions by all stakeholders. As you are aware, effective January 2023, the bank issued Risk-Based Cyber-Security Framework and Guidelines for Other Financial Institutions to ensure operational resilience in the face of cyber-security threats,”
The CBN boss also highlighted the role of the country’s central bank digital (CBDC) – eNaira – in advancing the innovative payment system. He revealed that the total transaction volume of eNaira has increased to 1.4 million, approximately double the volume recorded during its first anniversary.
In his remarks, the Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Adbulmumin Isah, said the discussions aimed to deepen the electronic payment system.
cc: The Guardian Ng
