The Central Bank of Nigeria has instructed banks to remove the post-no-debit restriction on the bank accounts of 440 individuals and companies, including renowned fintech platforms like Bamboo and Risevest, along with the well-known sports betting company Nairabet.
The directive was communicated through a circular signed by A.M. Barau, the Director of Banking Supervision at the apex bank, and sent to all banks, mandating that they inform the affected customers, both individuals, and companies, about this decision.
Among the list of companies whose accounts have been unfrozen, we find other notable names like Yellow Card, Chaka, and Trove.
The post-no-debit restriction had previously prevented these platforms and individuals from withdrawing money from their accounts, though they could still receive funds into them.
The accounts of these investment platforms had been frozen for approximately two years following allegations by the CBN that they engaged in illegal transactions.
Initially suspended for 180 days to facilitate the apex bank’s investigation, they have now been unfrozen, though the specific outcomes of the investigation were not disclosed by the CBN.
The court order for the freezing of these accounts came in August 2021, at the behest of the Central Bank, which was investigating the companies for alleged illicit forex transactions and non-documentation.
The motion filed before the court by the apex bank reads, “The investigation being carried out concerns what has been discovered to be serious infractions by the defendants and respondents in connection with some foreign exchange transactions and non-documentation by the defendants and respondents in violation of the extant laws and regulations, particularly the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act and the Central Bank of Nigeria foreign exchange manual.”
“More specifically, there is a grave allegation that the defendants and respondents are engaged in illegal foreign exchange transactions, accessing or procuring foreign exchange via their banks from the Nigerian foreign exchange market via several bureaux de change and international money transfer operators, and have transferred cash deposits of more than S10,000.00 (Ten thousand dollars) to various accounts overseas.”
However, the recent directive from the CBN to lift the restrictions implies that the investigation has led to a decision in favour of the fintech platforms.
