Leading fintech company in Nigeria, OPay, has announced that it will be purging fraudulent accounts from its system starting March 1, 2024.
This was disclosed at a press conference on Wednesday, where the mobile money firm also noted that accounts not compliant with Know Your Customer regulations will be blocked.
KYC is a mandatory process for banks to gather information about their customers’ identities and addresses to prevent misuse of banking services.
This action by OPay is aimed at bolstering the security of its platform and safeguarding customer deposits against fraud. The decision follows a report that identified shortcomings in OPay’s registration and verification procedures for new users.
Olayemi Precilia, the Director of Cards Business at OPay, addressed these issues, stating that security on the platform has been enhanced. New customers will now be required to provide their National Identity Number when opening an account.
“When you log into your app and have a tier one account without a linked NIN, it will prompt you for your NIN. You can’t proceed without entering it. That’s one of the key measures we’ve implemented,” she explained.
Ikponmwosa Kolawole Odiase, the Director of Partnerships at OPay, added that all fraudulent accounts would be “yanked off” the system. He further mentioned that, going forward, customers must link their accounts with their NIN and Bank Verification Numbers.
Addressing the issue of inadequate facial verification in the application, Odiase revealed plans to introduce a system for backend verification of customers’ facial data with their BVNs and NINs. This move is expected to significantly reduce the number of fictitious accounts on the platform.
