Over the past six months, data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has revealed that a total of 2.47 million Nigerians have registered for the Bank Verification Number (BVN).
As of March 2024, the latest figures released by NIBSS indicate that the BVN count has reached 61.16 million. Comparing this to the BVN count reported in December 2023, which stood at 59.9 million, reveals that there were 674,280 new registrations within the three-month period.
Furthermore, data from September 2023 showed that the number of registered BVNs was 58.7 million, indicating that NIBSS recorded 2,466,384 new BVN registrations from September to March.
The significant increase in BVN registrations underscores the growing importance of financial inclusion and regulatory compliance within Nigeria’s banking sector.
Introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria on February 14, 2014, the BVN aims to safeguard bank customers, mitigate fraud, and strengthen the resilience of the Nigerian banking system.
In December, the CBN announced its intention to freeze accounts without a BVN or National Identification Number (NIN), starting in April of the same year. The CBN also mandated that all BVNs or NINs linked to accounts or wallets be electronically revalidated by January 31, 2024.
Since the issuance of this directive, deposit money banks have actively used their communication platforms to encourage customers to update their NIN and BVN details.
In a circular, the apex bank instructed lenders to impose a “Post no Debit” restriction on all existing Tier-1 accounts/wallets without BVN or NIN. This restriction prevents customers from making withdrawals, transfers, or any other debits from such accounts.
Furthermore, effective March 1, 2024, all funded accounts or wallets were to be placed on “Post No Debit or Credit,” with no further transactions permitted until the new process is satisfied.
