BY
MAYOWA SAMUEL
The Central Bank of Nigeria has debunked reports that the Bank Verification Number issued by the Bank in collaboration with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System expires after a 10-year period.
The apex bank said, contrary to these claims, the BVN had no expiry date, noting that once a customer’s biometrics had been captured and enrolled in the NIBSS database, “the BVN remains for life”.
The CBN made the clarification in a statement on Wednesday, signed by the Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Isa AbdulMumin.
The statement read, “The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to reports suggesting that the Bank Verification Number (BVN) issued by the Bank in collaboration with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) expires after a ten-year period.
“Contrary to these claims, we wish to clarify that the BVN issued in Nigeria has no expiry date. Once a customer’s biometrics have been captured and enrolled in the database of NIBSS, the BVN remains for life.
“However, the regulatory framework for BVN issued by the CBN in 2021 stipulates that customers can only change their records due to certain conditions spelt out in the document and after being cleared by relevant authorities.
“Therefore, we urge bank customers in the country, especially those whose biometrics have been captured by the system, to continue using their unique identifiers as they last their entire lifetime.
“Be guided accordingly.”
