Banks release updates on unused Savings Accounts

Nigerian deposit money banks (DMBs) have started to inform their customers that unused savings accounts for periods of 12 months will be classified as dormant, as ordered by the regulator – the Central Bank. In their separate notices, banks said, in line with the directive from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), savings accounts that have not been used for a specified period will now be classified as inactive or dormant. Bankers said this means that accounts with no transactions for 6 months will be marked as inactive. However, if inactivity continues, such savings accounts will become dormant after 12 months. The CBN seeks to increase transparency about banked and unbanked Nigerians in the rural and urban centres for record purposes. MarketForces Africa gathered that a dormant account cannot be operated until it is formally reactivated. Banks also appear to have different rules and processes regarding reactivation of such accounts.