Keeping Money Mistakenly Paid Into Your Account Could Land You in 10 years Jail – CBN Warns Nigerians
By Trek Africa Newspaper
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned Nigerians that failure to return money mistakenly deposited into their bank accounts could attract between five and 10 years’ imprisonment.
The apex bank also cautioned bank customers against disclosing their personal and financial information to fraudsters, warning that obtaining another person’s account details through fraudulent means constitutes a serious financial offence.
CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, gave the warning through the bank’s spokesperson, Hakama Sidi Ali, during a stakeholders’ meeting under the “Central Bank of Nigeria Listens Programme” held at Jogor Event Centre, Ibadan, Oyo State, on Thursday.
Cardoso reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to maintaining financial stability, protecting customers’ rights and strengthening public confidence in Nigeria’s financial system.
“Obtaining information relating to another person(s) account through fraudulent means attracts severe penalties. A customer who fails to refund wrongly deposited money to the rightful owner attracts 5-10 years’ imprisonment,” he said.
The CBN governor described the programme as one of the bank’s flagship platforms for direct engagement with stakeholders across the country, noting that regular dialogue and feedback were essential to effective policy formulation and implementation.
According to him, the engagement reflects the bank’s commitment to understanding the concerns of individuals, businesses and financial institutions while improving the delivery of its policies.
The meeting was themed “Towards a Robust, Resilient and Inclusive Financial System for Sustainable Economic Growth.”
Cardoso said the theme was particularly relevant as Nigeria navigates a rapidly changing economic and financial environment.
He reiterated that the CBN would continue to pursue its mandate of ensuring monetary and financial system stability while promoting confidence in the economy.
The governor noted that recent reforms had focused on restoring macroeconomic stability, strengthening financial markets, improving transparency, expanding financial inclusion and positioning the country for sustainable economic growth.
He added that the bank had undertaken significant reforms over the past 38 months to strengthen the resilience and integrity of Nigeria’s financial system.
According to Cardoso, the reforms are designed to promote inclusive growth, encourage wealth creation and help alleviate poverty.
The CBN’s warning serves as a reminder to bank customers to handle funds received in error responsibly, report mistaken transfers through the appropriate banking channels and protect their banking information from unauthorised access.
Customers who receive unexpected deposits are advised to contact their banks for guidance rather than spend the money or attempt to resolve the matter through unverified channels.
Trek Africa Newspaper reports that customers should also remain vigilant against financial scams and promptly report suspicious transactions to their banks.
