Aggrieved depositors of the defunct Heritage Bank Plc have renewed calls on the Federal Government, the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation to ensure the full repayment of their outstanding funds.

The depositors, under the Concerned Heritage Bank Depositors Forum, said they had remained in prolonged financial uncertainty more than two years after the bank’s licence was revoked.

The CBN revoked Heritage Bank’s banking licence on June 3, 2024, citing the lender’s failure to improve its financial position and the absence of a realistic prospect of recovery.

Following the licence revocation, the NDIC was appointed as the bank’s liquidator, with responsibility for recovering the bank’s assets and paying depositors in line with the applicable liquidation process.

However, the depositors’ group, in a statement titled “Our Money, Our Right: Pay Heritage Bank Depositors Their Full Funds Now,” said some customers were still unable to access what they described as legitimate funds held in the failed bank.

The group said the prolonged wait had subjected affected customers to severe financial difficulties, particularly those whose trapped deposits represented years of savings and earnings.

According to the depositors, the funds held by Heritage Bank were needed to meet essential obligations, including school fees, medical expenses, business financing and retirement needs.

They said the continued delay had therefore gone beyond a banking-sector issue, with its consequences increasingly affecting household finances, livelihoods and economic well-being.

The depositors urged the Federal Government and financial regulators to intensify efforts to resolve all outstanding claims and ensure that eligible customers receive their funds.

They also called on civil society organisations, the media and other stakeholders to support their campaign, describing their demand as a matter of financial justice, public confidence and the protection of depositors’ rights.

“Behind every trapped account is a Nigerian family facing real hardship. Let’s join hands to push the campaign. Justice delayed is hardship prolonged. Nigerians had saved responsibly, and institutions must equally act responsibly in resolving the matter,” the group said.

The depositors maintained that the objective of their campaign was straightforward: “We saved responsibly. They must pay responsibly.”

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the NDIC, Thompson Sunday, said on August 5 in Lagos that some Heritage Bank depositors were yet to be traced because the bank had inherited customer accounts from legacy institutions, including Enterprise Bank, Spring Bank and Guardian Express Bank. He noted that many of the accounts predated the introduction of the Bank Verification Number system, making it difficult to identify and trace some depositors.

“There are depositors that we have not been able to trace, and this is an opportunity for them to come forward. Once they do, we will pay them,” he said.

He added that funds recovered from loans and proceeds from the sale of assets of failed banks would be used to repay depositors with balances above the insured limit.