Banks tackle customers over BVN deadline

It their bid to meet the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) set deadline of June 30, 2015, for all banks customers get register for their Bank Verification Numbers, many banks are now aggressively confronting their respective customers to ensure they get their BVN numbers before any banking transaction is effected.

A visit by Hallmark to some banks in Lagos revealed that customers who have not registered for their verification numbers were not attended to.

The development created queues for those who could not transact their businesses with the banks to be attended to by some banks’ staff that were busy computing from filled-out forms by the desperate customers.

Customers who wanted to withdraw or deposit cash and have not registered were declined services.

Some of them were only attended to after being drilled by some senior staff of the banks.

Speaking with Hallmark at UBA bank along Ogudu-Ojota Road in Lagos, a customer who simply identified as Jide, said he was disappointed by the action of the bank.

According to him, “This action is quite unprofessional.

I cannot withdraw my money which I gave to the bank to keep for me.

How much awareness have they created about this initiative before all these sanctions? Here I am to withdraw my money for an urgent need, and they are telling they cannot attend to me if since I have not got a BVN.

What can I do now that to queue behind others who are also waiting to register.”

In the same bank, another customer, Ifeoma Akwaja, who was to deposit some money into her mother’s account was shocked to hear from the bank cashier that she would not be attended to until she writes her BVN on the deposit slip.

Not even the explanation that the account she wanted to deposit the money was not hers was accepted.

She left the bank in fury without waiting to register for her BVN.

“Can you imagine! What if I don’t have a bank account? So, that means I cannot receive or send money without the so-called BVN. It is disheartening because not enough awareness has been done on this,” Akwaja fumed.

When Hallmark enquired from a lady cashier who declined to give her names about the development, she said the order is from above.

“We were instructed not to attend to anybody that cannot produce his or her bank verification number. CBN gave us the order to register all our bank customers.

And that is what we are enforcing before the deadline expires. And if this action is not taken, people will not comply. We are not punishing them.

Those that have registered but do not remember their numbers are directed to some of our officials who will confirm and approve before we render the services they demand,” the bank staff explained.

Also at UBA University of Lagos branch, many people, mostly students, were surprised when their service requests were denied.

In the words of Olubunmi Adekoya, a student of the university:

“You can see that I am drenched by the rain. My plan was to spend few minutes here to withdraw the money my parents sent to me to sort out some things and use the balance for my transport fair.

But here I am being interrogated as if I am begging them for money. Well, I have no option than to wait and register for the BVN even though UBA is not my bank.”