Recently, a claim went viral that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had revoked the license of Unity, Keystone and Polaris Banks. This claim circulated across several social platforms and a version, posted on X (formerly Twitter) garnered over 16,000 views.
The claim went viral shortly after the CBN revoked the license of Heritage Bank. According to the CBN’s Revocation Order signed by the governor, Yemi Cardoso, Heritage Bank contravened Section 12 (1) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020 in five different ways: It has insufficient assets to meet its liabilities; conducted its business in an unsound manner; failed to comply with specific obligations imposed upon it under BOFIA, 2020 and the Central Bank of Nigeria Act as well as rules, regulation, guidelines and directives made under both Acts; is critically undercapitalized with a capital adequacy ratio below the prudential minimum applicable to its license category; and its financial performance and condition constitute a threat to financial stability.
Previously, the CBN terminated and dissolved the entire board of Polaris, Keystone and Unity Bank. The notice of termination and dissolution was made public on January 10, 2024 and was to take effect immediately. The CBN accused the board of the banks of not complying with the provisions of Section 12(c), (f), (g), (h) of Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020. After the dissolution, the apex bank immediately appointed a new set of executives to sit on the board of the banks. The CDD War Room can establish that it is these past events that led to the spread of the viral claim that the CBN has revoked the licenses of Unity, Polaris and Keystone banks.
Claim: The Central Bank of Nigeria has revoked the licenses of Unity, Keystone and Polaris banks
Verification:
The CBN has responded to the viral claim that the apex bank revoked the licenses of three commercial banks. In a statement signed Hakama Sidi Ali, the acting. director of corporate communications, the CBN unequivocally stated that “these allegations are false and intended to trigger panic in the financial system.”
The CDD War Room checked some branches of these banks and found that banking operations are ongoing while customers make seamless transactions.
Verdict: FALSE
The CDD War Room can confirm that the CBN has not revoked the licenses of Unity, Keystone and Polaris banks. Although the Boards of the banks were previously restructured, we found a press statement where the apex bank described the viral claim of license withdrawal as false.