CBN makes social media handle mandatory KYC requirements for bank customers

In an effort to enhance the accuracy and depth of customer identification, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made it mandatory for financial institutions to collect and verify customers’ social media handles as part of their Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.

The CBN’s latest move aims to bolster compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT) provisions while aligning with international best practices.

These new regulations, which complement existing provisions outlined in the CBN’s Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Countering Proliferation Financing of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Financial Institutions Regulations of 2022, are designed to fortify the fight against money laundering, terrorism financing, and proliferation financing.

Under the new regulations, financial institutions are required to establish internal processes and procedures for conducting customer due diligence measures for both potential and existing customers, including occasional customers.

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They must identify customers, whether individuals or legal entities, and obtain specific information such as legal names, addresses, contact details, identification documents, account types, nature of banking relationships, and signatures. Furthermore, the regulations emphasize the need to identify politically exposed persons (PEPs).

Financial institutions must retain records obtained through customer due diligence measures, account files, business correspondence, and analysis results for at least five years after the termination or cessation of a business relationship or an occasional transaction.

Regular reviews of existing customer records are required based on risk categories, with high-risk customers requiring annual reviews, medium-risk customers requiring reviews every 18 months, and low-risk customers requiring reviews every three years.

Under section 6 (IV) of the new regulation, financial institutions operating under the regulatory purview of the CBN are now obligated to collect and verify customers’ social media handles as part of their KYC process.

The inclusion of social media handles in KYC requirements aims to enhance the accuracy and depth of customer identification.

The CBN’s decision to include social media handles as a mandatory KYC requirement recognizes the growing influence and prevalence of social media platforms in individuals’ and businesses’ daily lives.

The addition of social media handles to the KYC requirements reflects the CBN’s commitment to keeping pace with technological advancements and evolving risks in the financial sector.

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By adapting regulations to include digital footprints, the CBN aims to ensure that financial institutions have a more holistic understanding of their customers, promoting enhanced due diligence and risk mitigation.