- Urges public to safe-keep funds in licensed banks
BY COBHAM NSA – The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has cautioned Nigerians against keeping their savings in unlicensed and unregulated regulated financial institutions, or risk losing everything to non-mainstream pooled investment schemes.
This is as the Corporation accelerates its push toward a fully digital ecosystem by abandoning slow manual workflows for rapid, automated reimbursements, while simultaneously leveraging cutting-edge fintech infrastructure to deliver near-instantaneous payouts.
Speaking at the 21st Abuja International Trade Fair on Wednesday, NDIC Managing Director Mr. Thompson Oludare Sunday cautioned that placing funds with unlicensed managers and chasing unrealistic returns from shadow fund managers can have devastating consequences.
He said it is unfortunate that despite repeated warnings, many Nigerians, lured by the promises of ‘extraordinary and unrealistic returns’ by financial predators, still bypass the formal banking system to keep their life savings with unlicensed fund managers.
Sunday, who cited the repeated collapse of Ponzi schemes as proof of the heavy financial and emotional cost of such bad choices, cautioned: “If an investment promise sounds too good to be true, Nigerians should pause, ask questions and verify before committing their money.”
While praising the Chamber for sustaining the fair for 21 consecutive years, the NDIC Chief Executive described this year’s theme, “Resilience: Trade, Taxation and the Economy,” as timely and strategic, noting it speaks to an economy undergoing bold reforms in line with the Federal Government’s vision of a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
According to him, the Corporation has remained a critical pillar of Nigeria’s financial safety net for over three decades through deposit guarantee, bank supervision in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), failure resolution and bank liquidation.
He maintained that every thriving business needs a trusted financial system that can safeguard its working capital, facilitate payments and support access to credit, recalling that NDIC had raised its deposit insurance coverage limits in 2024 as part of measures to adjust for inflation, counteract currency depreciation, and protect a higher percentage of vulnerable depositors.
Going by the development, Nigerian depositors now have a beefed-up safety net with official coverage limits secure up to ₦5 million per account holder at traditional Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and Mobile Money Operators (MMOs), while under the current protective framework, customers holding accounts with Microfinance Banks (MFBs), Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs), and Payment Service Banks (PSBs) are also shielded against financial distress with a maximum guaranteed limit of ₦2 million per depositor.
The NDIC Managing Director explained that the new limits give full coverage to over 98 percent of depositors across insured institutions, protecting households, small businesses and other vulnerable depositors from the immediate effects of bank failure.
He further said for depositors whose balances exceed the insured limits, the NDIC continues to pay liquidation dividends from the recovery of debts owed to failed institutions and the sale of their physical assets, adding that: “Our objective is straightforward: no depositor should lose confidence in the banking system merely because an insured institution has failed.”
Also, disclosing that the corporation has moved from manual processes to faster digital reimbursement, using the Bank Verification Number (BVN), Single Customer View (SCV), NIBSS infrastructure and other tools, the NDIC chief Executive said verified depositors of failed banks now receive their insured deposits within days of bank closure.
He said the NDIC has positioned itself not merely as a payer of claims after a bank fails but as a Risk Minimizer that identifies vulnerabilities early and works to stop institutional problems from becoming systemic crises, assuring that the corporation has been deploying Risk Based Supervision, an enhanced Differential Premium Assessment System, the SCV Framework, a full distress resolution suite and the Bank Liquidation Management System, alongside stronger collaboration with the CBN and other members of the safety net to protect and keep the banking industry safe.
Launching the Corporation’s upgraded website, www.ndic.gov.ng, on September 19, 2026, Mr Sunday described it as a one-stop digital gateway for depositors and other stakeholders, explaining that the platform displays the enhanced coverage limits, offers automated claims processing features and carries an upgraded directory for checking NDIC insured institutions.
He also stated that a one-click Quick Action Bar gives direct access to four key services: File Claim, Check Banks, Report Failed Bank and FAQs, even as the site also has an AI powered virtual assistant for faster access to information.
According to him, “This is more than a website upgrade. It is another step in our journey towards a more accessible, responsive and technology driven NDIC”, and urged depositors, creditors and shareholders of closed banks to use the digital platforms to process their claims.
The NDIC boss said depositors can expedite the payouts by ensuring their account details are accurate, consistent across all banks, and linked to their Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs), saying that with the new technology eliminating physical verification, depositors no longer need to visit failed bank premises or NDIC offices, just as the burden of carrying large volumes of paperwork has been eliminated.
However, he admitted that technology and regulation alone cannot guarantee financial security, and stressed the need to deploy financial literacy as a depositor’s first line of defense.
Consequently, Mr Sunday charged businesses and the public to boost their financial literacy and adopt digital services responsibly, urging them to maintain sound financial practices and consult regulators for guidance at all times.
Meanwhile, moving to deepen public trust in the banking sector, the Corporation’s Chief Executive rallied the Fair participants to engage directly with officials at the NDIC Pavilion, noting that the dedicated hub serves as a frontline center for public enlightenment, offering vital education on deposit insurance, asset protection, claims resolution, and financial literacy.
Highlighting the significance of the Fair, the NDIC Chief Executive lauded the Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ACCI), formerly ABUCCIMA, on its landmark 21st trade fair, expressing deep appreciation to the traditional rulers, exhibitors, and members of the press whose attendance underscored the corporation’s vital mandate.
