Liquidation Dividends: NDIC Assures Heritage Bank Depositors Of 1st Tranche Payment
- Sets April ending date
The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) will pay the first tranche of liquidation dividends to depositors of Heritage Bank before the end of April 2025.
Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Corporation, Mr Bello Hassan, who gave the assurance, said preparations have reached advanced stage to ease financial hardship faced by the failed bank’s depositors.
Bello spoke on Wednesday at the NDIC Special Day at the ongoing 36th Enugu International Trade, saying; “I wish to reassure all depositors that the NDIC has the financial and operational capacity to fully reimburse all depositors as recoveries are made”.
The Managing Director, represented by South-East Coordinator of NDIC, Mrs Pamela Robert, said the Corporation is effectively collaborating with the CBN to maintain stability in the banking sector; enforce compliance with banking regulations; and exercise effective oversight over insured deposit-taking institutions.
According to him, the approach of paying insured deposits while simultaneously realising assets and recovering loans is to ensure that no depositor was left behind.
He stressed that as more recoveries are made, subsequent tranches of liquidation dividends would follow, adding; “Our record in bank liquidation is reassuring. NDIC has successfully declared fully liquidation dividends to depositors of 20 previously failed banks.
“This reflects our unwavering commitment to depositor protection and our proven capacity to manage bank failures effectively.
“Therefore, I urge depositors of closed banks, particularly Heritage Bank, who have not yet received their payments, to come forward and provide necessary documentation supporting ownership of the account.”
Highlighting that the required documents include the Bank Verification Number (BVN), and alternate bank account number for payment of the insured sum, Bello said; “Claims can be submitted through our website, email, social media platforms, or by visiting any of our Zonal Offices”.
He said the NDIC has consistently played a crucial role in maintaining financial stability by ensuring depositors receive prompt compensation when banks failed, explaining that “A recent example is the revocation of Heritage Bank’s operating license by the CBN.”
The NDIC boss further said; “In line with its statutory mandate, the Corporation immediately began liquidation process, including verification and payment of insured deposits of up to a maximum of N5 million per depositor within four days.
“This swift action has enabled the payment of insured amounts to the majority of the bank’s depositors using their BVN as a unique identifier to locate their alternate accounts for payment.
“Those yet to be paid are largely depositors without BVNs or alternate accounts in other banks, or those with Post-No-Debit (PND) restrictions.
“Some accounts also have KYC issues, such as Tier 1 limits or name mismatches, while a few depositors may be unaware that payments have been made due to lack of transaction alerts on the alternate accounts”.
In his remarks, President of the Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ECCIMA), Chief Odeiga Jideonwo, praised NDIC for its effective operations that continue to ensure the nation’s banking industry is safe and sound.
However, Chief Jideonwo urged the Corporation to improve the current level of compensation paid to depositors anytime that banks go under.
He said; “It is indeed a big challenge and we hope that the NDIC would increase the percentage of money paid to depositors depending on the total amount of deposit each customer has in the bank”.
Also, the ECCIMA President pleaded that the CBN through its regulatory framework should make the work of NDIC easier by ensuring that chances of bank failure was reduced to the barest minimum and guard against depositors going through any negative experience for putting their hard-earned monies in the bank. – With NAN reports
