The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has commenced the payment of insured deposits to customers affected by the closure of 46 microfinance banks whose licences were recently withdrawn by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday during the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) Africa Regional Committee meeting, NDIC Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Thompson Sunday, said the reimbursement process is already in progress.
According to him, the corporation is leveraging the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and customers’ Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) to transfer insured funds directly into alternative bank accounts, reducing the need for affected depositors to visit NDIC offices.
He advised customers without BVNs to report to the nearest NDIC zonal office to complete the necessary verification process before receiving their payments.
Sunday noted that the CBN revoked the operating licences of the 46 microfinance banks on July 1, 2026, after which the NDIC assumed its statutory role as provisional liquidator. He explained that eligible depositors are currently being paid the maximum insured deposit of N2 million.
He added that customers with deposits exceeding the insured limit could receive additional payments once the corporation concludes the recovery of assets and outstanding loans belonging to the failed institutions. Funds realised from the liquidation process, he said, would be distributed to eligible depositors as liquidation dividends.
The NDIC chief pointed to previous interventions involving Heritage Bank, Aso Savings and Union Homes as evidence of the corporation’s commitment to prompt compensation. He disclosed that insured depositors of Heritage Bank received their payments within four days of the bank’s licence revocation.
Although the NDIC Act allows up to 30 days for the settlement of insured deposits following a bank’s closure, Sunday said the corporation is working to complete payments well ahead of the statutory deadline.
The CBN had withdrawn the licences of the affected microfinance banks after determining that they no longer met the regulatory requirements needed to continue operations. The apex bank said the action was aimed at protecting depositors, strengthening confidence in the banking sector and ensuring compliance with existing banking regulations.
