The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has ordered four financial technology companies (fintechs) OPay, Palmpay, Kuda Bank, and Moniepoint to suspend taking on new customers until further notice.
This follows investigations into suspicions that the accounts of the four fintech companies are being used for illegal foreign exchange transactions and terrorism financing.
Sources close to the said fintech companies confirm that such investigations are underway but claim that most of the accounts under scrutiny by investigators are domiciled in commercial banks rather than in fintech companies.
This, they say, makes the ban on fintech companies from taking on new customers appear curious and misplaced.
The CBN’s clamp down on the fintechs is said to have been sparked-off by findings from a Know-Your-Customer audit being conducted on them by the apex bank.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had earlier obtained a court order to freeze 1,146 bank accounts of individuals and corporates suspected of involvement in unlawful foreign exchange deals.
The EFCC further claimed that its investigation indicated the accounts were connected to persons exploiting virtual cryptocurrency exchange platforms to manipulate the value of the local currency, the naira, and launder monies from shady deals, both of which are legally actionable offences.
