Access Bank hosts Stakeholders Forum on Anti-Money Laundering
Access Bank recently organised a Stakeholders Awareness Forum to enlighten its customers and other stakeholder groups on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s directives to Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria and other financial institutions on additional Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements for Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs).
Specifically, the apex bank has mandated all financial institutions to obtain evidence of registration of DNFBPs with the Special Control Unit on Money Laundering (SCUML) of the Federal Ministry of Trades and Investments prior to establishing business relationships.
Addressing participants, the Bank’s Group Managing Director, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede represented by Pattison Boleigha, Chief Compliance Officer acknowledged the contributions of the regulators towards the growth of the Nigerian banking sector and described the fresh directive as a regulatory effort to elevate the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing in Nigeria to a much more commendable height.
He informed the Bank’s customers at the occasion, whose profile fall into the category of the Designated Non Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs) that the gathering was organized to provide an opportunity to address all gray areas concerning the registration requirements and interact with the relevant regulatory authorities for proper understanding of the directive.
In his presentation titled “The Challenges of Keeping Nigeria off the Financial Action Task Force Blacklist”, the Deputy Director, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), U.A. Obot, who was represented by Matthew Alabi, encouraged the participants to appreciate why DNFBPs are required to obtain evidence of registration with SCUML before opening account and emphasised that this will help tighten loopholes being exploited to launder illicit wealth.
The Forum held in Lagos, had in attendance representatives from regulatory authorities such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and the Special Control Unit of Money Laundering (SCUML), as well as other categories of stakeholders whose contributions facilitated customers understanding of the importance of complying with the directive.
Similarly, the interactive platform provided by the Bank enabled customers seek clarification about the modalities of obtaining evidence of registration with SCUML, gain more insights into contemporary Money Laundering vulnerabilities relating to DNFBPs and the various activities and contributions of regulators that have raised the country’s profile in the international financial community through promotion, commitment and compliance with global anti-money laundering/KYC regime.
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