Federal Government has been given power to freeze all bank accounts without Bank Verification Number, BVN.
This follows the order of the High Court in Abuja to the Central Bank of Nigeria and the 19 commercial banks in the country.
It also ordered them to disclose all accounts in their custody and the balances in such accounts, their owners and their proceeds in their affidavit of compliance deposed to by their Chief Compliance Officers.
The order was issued by Justice Nnamdi Dimgba on October 17, 2017 upon an ex parte motion filed on behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Attorney General of the Federation.
The court directed the CBN and the Nigeria Interbank Settlement Systems “to validate the information contained in the affidavit of compliance/disclosure filed by the respective 19 banks” within seven days from the date of service of the orders on them.
The ex parte motion FHC/ABJ/CS/911/2017, was moved on behalf of the applicants by A. D. Tyoden.
The title of the ex parte application indicated that the accounts without BVN allegedly had insufficient Know Customer Guidelines, contrary to the directive of the CBN and Section 3 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended).
The title reads, ‘In the matter of an application seeking an interim order directing all the money deposit banks (commercial banks) to disclose/declare all individual and corporate accounts in their custody not covered by Bank Verification Numbers and for an interim order of forfeiture of the monies therein being accounts with insufficient Know Customer Guidelines contrary to the directive of the CBN and Section 3 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended).’
