Nigerians in London, United Kingdom, have expressed frustration over the compulsory payment of £30 (about N10, 000) for the registration of the Bank Verification Number, as directed by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Some of them stormed the Nigeria High Commission in London to protest against the directive of the apex bank. Others took to the social media to vent their anger.The CBN had recently extended the deadline for the BVN registration from June 30 to October 31, 2015 as disclosed in a circular issued to all deposit money banks operating in the country.
The Director, Banking and Payment Systems Department of the CBN, Mr. Dipo Fatokun, said the extension became imperative in order to give bank customers more time to participate in the enrolment exercise.
Though the BVN registration in Nigeria is free, Nigerians living in London have had to part with N10, 000 to enrol on the exercise. The directive was said to have been issued by the apex bank, as confirmed by the UK chapter of the All Progressives Congress and Zenith Bank.The APC, UK chapter, had asked the bank on Twitter about the authenticity of the directive and the bank replied, saying, “The letter is genuine. The fee is as communicated by CBN and the enrolment company was contracted by the CBN. We trust this helps.”
The Director, Corporate Communications Department, CBN, Mr. Mu’azu Ibrahim, could not be reached for comments as repeated calls made to his mobile phone did not connect.