The Central Bank of Nigeria has ordered financial institutions to collect client information such as social media handles, email addresses, phone numbers, residential addresses, and more.
This is done in an effort to further strengthen the identification process inside the banking system and is a component of its new client due diligence rules. This information was provided by the top bank in its recently published regulation, “Central Bank of Nigeria (Customer Due Diligence) Regulations, 2023.”
According to the CBN, the goal of the new legislation was to give financial institutions that fall under its regulatory purview more ways to do further client due diligence.
As stated in the document, “To provide additional customer due diligence measures for financial institutions under the regulatory purview of the Central Bank of Nigeria to further their compliance with relevant provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (MLPPA), 2022, Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (TPPA), 2022, and Central Bank of Nigeria (Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Countering Proliferation Financing
And allow the CBN to enforce adherence to customer due diligence requirements in accordance with CBN AML, CFT, and CPF Regulations.
The banking regulation specified in its client identification column that financial institutions were required to identify their customers (whether ongoing or transient, whether natural or legal persons or legal arrangements), and to gather the following data:
For individuals, the following information is required: “For Individuals — Legal Name and Any Other Names Used (Including Maiden Name), Permanent Address (Full Physical Address), Residential Address (Where the Customer Can Be Located), Telephone Number, E-mail Address, and Social Media Handle; Date and Place of Birth, Bank Verification Number, Tax Identification Number, Nationality, Occupation, Public Position Held, and Name of Employer.”
It also said that a person must possess a valid driver’s licence, national identification card, residence permit, passport, or other document.
The criteria was expanded to include “Type of Account, Nature of the Banking Relationship, Signature, and Status of Politically Exposed Person.
The document also contained distinct requirements for legal entities and legal agreements. All financial institutions falling under the CBN’s jurisdiction must abide by the restrictions, it claims.
