Page 5 - Inside Access

TALES FROM THE BANKING HALL
The BVN Issue
he BSM had an encounter documents had her full name Mrs replaying the conversation and with Mrs N. L. Oni when she Eucharia Nadia Linda Oni. made a note on her jotter for EMS came into the banking hall the next day. It would be a good
to correct a problem she had with her BVN and account names. She was not happy with the documents she was asked to provide at the CCO desk for the corrections and asked to see the BSM.
Her account had been opened in 2006 as Mrs Eucharia N. L. Oni and she now wanted her full names reflected on her account and the initials removed. The BSM quickly asked for her BVN number and realized the BVN name was Eucharia NL Oni! “Oh no, How did this happen?” asked the exasperated BSM.
Turns out Mrs Oni had fallen in love with her account name over the years and adopted NS as her middle name during her BVN registration, and proceeded to fill same on the form! It was however becoming a thorn as her ID cards and other
Mrs Oni felt the Bank was at fault as she had been told her name was too long at the point of account opening all those years ago and that it did not matter if some names were abbreviated. The manager understood and then had a conversation with Mrs Oni on the evolvement of KYC over the years, the documentation for update required and why each was necessary from the legal and public angle and why the aim was for uniformity across board.
Mrs Oni was unhappy as she had to go the court for a name change affidavit as well as put up a public notice in a newspaper, however she agreed, to do same as she understood the explanations given.
Mrs Oni left smiling, with a promise to return to the Bank with a short time... The BSM went to her desk
topic for discussion with her team. They would thrash out the salient points and debate if it was it right to abbreviate Mrs Onis' name at the point of account opening.
Why did the BVN registration officer fail to engage Mrs Oni on her middle name? What could have been done differently?, The quickest way may be okay in the beginning but could lead to complex problems years later for the Bank and the customer. Who would have imagined the introduction of BVN in 2006 and the huge importance it would have in the financial sector? She made another note in her jotter, accuracy and due diligence is key at all times....especially when you are the inputer/authorizer.
Contributed by Lidadi Bassey
PAGE 5 INSIDE ACCESS | NOVEMBER 2020 4TH EDITION