WorldStage– The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has encouraged bank depositors to escalate unresolved complaints to NDIC through its official channels, social media handles, help lines, website, email, offices nationwide, among others.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive, Mr Thompson Sunday gave the advice on Tuesday at an event to mark NDIC special day at the ongoing Lagos International Trade Fair also advised Nigerians to seek clarification from the corporation on status of suspicious financial institutions and report banking-related infractions to secure their funds.
Sunday who was represented by the Director of the Claims Resolution Department, Wale Sule, said one of the mandates of NDIC is banking supervision.
He added that, the corporation is available to handle any bank customer’s complaints unresolved by banks within two week.
He explained that the mandate of NDIC is to guarantee depositors funds, supervise banks, resolve distressed insured institutions and liquidate failed banks.
He also explained the collaborative role with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to maintain banking sector stability, enforce regulatory compliance.and ensure effective oversight taking institutions
He also advised the public to watch out for NDIC protection logo towards escaping gimmicks of wonder banks.
“A Wonder Bank cannot have a logo that says protected by NDIC,” he said.
He said if any bank is soliciting for funds, customers should walk into any NDIC offices to complain or verify their authenticity through all NDIC official help lines.
He said the theme of the 2025 fair: “Connecting Business, Creating Value”aligned closely with the public policy objectives and mandate of NDIC.
Sunday said that the fair provided a valuable platform to showcase the ingenuity of the nation’s entrepreneurs, capacity of manufacturers and the creativity of small, medium, and micro enterprises (SMEs).
He added that the fair also highlighted the critical role of the organisation’s financial system as a vehicle that connects economic activities for sustainability and growth
He congratulated the Lagos Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (LCCI) for its tireless efforts in organising the fair over the decades.
“This platform has consistently promoted trade and investment, showcased innovation, informed the public about developments in the financial sector, and contributed significantly to economic growth,” .
“For the past 36 years, the NDIC has served as a vital component of Nigeria’s financial safety-net, playing a pivotal role in promoting the stability of the banking system by providing a strong and consistent layer of protection for depositors’ funds,” he said.
According to him, a stable banking system is an indispensable pillar that sustains business connectivity and enables value creation.
“We have made significant progress in enhancing depositor protection, particularly through increased deposit insurance coverage.
“Currently, the NDIC insures depositors of Deposit Money Banks (DMBs), Mobile Money Operators (MMOs), and Non-Interest Banks (NIBs) up to N5,000,000 per depositor while for Payment Service Banks (PSBs), Microfinance Banks (MFBs), and Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs), the coverage is N2,000,000.
“With this expanded coverage, approximately 99 per cent of depositors are covered, demonstrating our unwavering commitment to deepening public confidence in the banking system,” he said.
LCCI Deputy President, Leye Kupoluyi said Nigerian banks have become more important in Africa and enjoying global relevance because of the interventions of NDIC.
He recalled a past era where families lost their loved ones to shock of financial losses to failed banks before government established the NDIC to introduce stability.
“The highest growth in financial sector is banking. Our biggest export to Africa today is our banking.
“You can’t export something that is not strong. You can’t export something that is not reliable. You can’t export something that is not progressive.
“Therefore, we have to give some of this credit to NDIC and some of the credit to Nigerians that are very vigilant,” he said.
