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With eight months
to the deadline, banks are already gearing up for compliance with the
new uniform accounting system recently introduced by the Central Bank
of Nigeria (CBN).

In a circular
issued to the 24 commercial banks by the banking and payment system
department of the CBN and dated July 14, the banks were given a nine
month compliance period to migrate to the new system, which ends on
April 2011.

To be known as the
Nigerian Uniform Bank Account Number (NUBAN) system, the aim is to
standardise account numbers in banks in order to eliminate delays that
come with filling wrong account numbers for clearance.

Under the new
format, every bank is required to create and maintain a NUBAN code for
every customer account in its customer records database, which should
be the only account number to be used at all interfaces with a bank
customer. The Central Bank said the new format is in line with
international best practice and is expected to enhance the e-payment
system.

“We expect every
bank to maintain their present account numbers and use them for their
internal operations only as from the effective date of NUBAN, but every
such account number would have to be mapped to a NUBAN code as an
alternate account number,” the bank said in the circular. The new
number format will comprise 13 digits which includes the three-digit
bank code and a 10-digit NUBAN code.

Banks’ compliance

Moshood Isamotu,
Afribank spokesperson, said the bank had put in place modalities to
meet the deadline. “We have started implementing, even though we have a
nine month period. Our technology platform is flexible and can
accommodate such change,” he said. He added that Afribank would comply
with the CBN directive and begin to issue compliant account numbers to
its customers as soon as possible.

Frank Barde, head
of corporate affairs of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, said the bank was
still studying the directive and would ensure that its customers are
carried along. “We have nine months to comply. We will look at the
document and follow up as directed by the CBN,” he Barde said.
Intercontinental Bank on its part said the deadline period gives it
enough time to ensure compliance. “We are understudying and looking at
the implementation within the timeline given by the central bank,” said
a source in the bank who spoke off record.

Migration

The Central Bank
said banks are to submit their comprehensive migration plan to the new
system one month from the release of the circular. Compliance
monitoring will commence six months from the release of the circular.
“Any infractions to the dictates and stringent timelines provided in
this document shall attract severe sanctions as may be determined by
the Central Bank of Nigeria from time to time,” the circular stated.

The bank noted that
the upsurge in automated direct credit was as a result of the January
2009 directive that all ministries, departments, and agencies should
replace all forms of cheque payments with electronic payments, hence
the need to adopt a new cheque number system to make clearing and
settlements of cheques less cumbersome.

“As the Automated
Clearing House volume increased, so have complaints of banks and bank
customers resulting from the incidents of abuse of the clearing
system.”

The Central Bank
said the change would enable Nigeria to fully comply with the 10-digit
Account Number structure required by the West Africa Monetary Institute
(WAMI) towards the economic integration of ECOWAS countries.