The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that next-of-kin, legal representatives or beneficial owners can now claim unclaimed balances in dormant accounts.

The apex bank stated in a report released over the weekend that next-of-kin can now claim unclaimed funds by submitting applications to financial institutions. These applications must include legal proof of title and, for corporate entities, details of directors and authorized signatories.

The CBN will place unclaimed funds in the Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund (UBTF) Pool Account and invest them in treasury bills and other securities. The principal and any interest will be refunded to beneficiaries within 10 working days of a reclaim request.

Account owners must visit financial institutions to complete a reclaim form, and provide evidence of ownership, a sworn affidavit, and a valid ID. Financial institutions will verify the claim and send it to the CBN within 10 days. The CBN will refund the money within 10 days of receiving the request.

If a financial institution’s license is withdrawn, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) will manage dormant accounts. Balances in dormant domiciliary accounts are also affected by this policy, but active domiciliary accounts are not.

An inactive account has no customer-initiated transactions for six to 12 months. A dormant account remains inactive for one year or more. Unclaimed balances are those that have been dormant for at least 10 years.

Eligible accounts include current, savings, term deposits, domiciliary accounts, deposits for shares, prepaid card accounts, government-owned accounts, and more. Exempt accounts are those under litigation, investigation, or encumbered.

The CBN directed banks to notify account owners when an account becomes inactive or dormant and then on a quarterly basis.

Recall that the CBN recently directed financial institutions to transfer all unclaimed funds to an account managed by the apex bank.