Bank depositors should lose no sleep, no deposit will be lost –NDIC

Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has assured bank depositors of the safety of their monies in banks even in unlikely event of bank failure. Dr Kabiru Katata, Director, Research Policy and International Relations Department of NDIC, said this in Port Harcourt. He gave the assurance in a lecture at the 2022 workshop for business editors and members of the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN).

Katata said that the Corporation had a strong safety net system in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). He described deposit insurance as a safety net instrument used by the government to ensure the stability of the banking system and to protect depositors. According to him, the Corporation welcomes complaints of bank customers seeking redress against unfair treatment.

”No CBN, NDIC staff will tell you that any bank is having issues so, if you hear the rumours, discard them. In an unlikely event where it is true, it will be announced and be assured that 99.9 per cent of your deposits are safe. Once in a while, there might be issues but the safety net system is strong. NDIC has its resolution power, CBN have their own too,” he said. He said that no country would achieve development without the majority being involved in the financial system.

Katata said that without financial inclusion, poverty would not be effectively eradicated from the country. The director listed some challenges faced by the Corporation to include legal challenges to revocation and liquidation activities and lack of public awareness of the Deposit Insurance System (DIS). He said that the Corporation also conducted cyber-security examination in conjunction with the CBN to review the adequacy of information technology controls put in place by banks. The lecture was titled ‘the Role of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC): Beyond Deposit Insurance