Senate to probe banks, CBN over excessive bank charges

The Senate has launched investigation into complaints of excessive and illicit charges by commercial banks on customers accounts.

The decision to probe the banks followed a motion by the Senator Abba Moro (Benue South) at the plenary on Wednesday.

Moro noted that such charges and deductions range from bank SMS charges, intra-bank transfer charges in the sum of N52.50, Automated Teller Machine Card renewal charges, account maintenance charges in the sum of N93.13.

He expressed concerns that these charges had caused an uproar within the public as Nigerians have expressed dissatisfaction and displeasure over such excessive deductions which they feel are fraudulent and targeted at further impoverishing Nigerians.

He recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had in April 2017 revised card maintenance charges from N100 annually to N50 monthly.

“This means that every debit or credit card holder will pay N600 annually,” he said.

Moro cited a report of the Nigeria Inter Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) which says the central data base for banking transactions in the country showed that there were 29.4 million active cards being used by the 63 million active bank customers.

“Thus, bank customers in Nigeria will pay not less than N1.462 billion to banks as card maintenance charges every month, totaling N17.544 billion in a year,” he said

The Senate also noted how banks rather than giving customers cards struck in their machines back forced them to reapply for new ones at the rate of N1000.

The Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, thereby directed the Committee on Banking Insurance and other Financial Institutions to cause an investigation into the complaint.

He also directed the CBN to look into the complaints of Nigerians and review downward the charges on their accounts.