KOREDE FOGO
If you are within thevage of 18-30, and bank with First City Monument Bank (FCMB), note that your account may have been flagged for alleged fraudulent activities.
This is because, the bank has asked staff to be on the lookout for youths between the ages of 18-30 years who get involved in cryptocurrency, fraudulent and criminal activities.
Recall that the despite Nigerians’ growing interest in the cryptocurrency space, the CBN had in February ordered all financial institutions to close all accounts used in trading cryptocurrencies and other related transactions, citing security concerns.
However, FCMB in an internal email, titled “Compliance Advisory on Cryptocurrency Dealing/Transactions” is in furtherance of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s ban on the trading of cryptocurrency in the country, acounts “with high volume transactions operated by individuals between the age brackets of 18-30 years as signatories,” should be flagged for possible fraudulent activities by staff members, the memo said.
Other account types with similarly discriminatory guidelines include youth savings accounts, business savings accounts, personal business accounts, amongst others. The bank did not define what constitutes a high volume of transactions, but the account types listed captured all of its available packages for Nigerian youths.
The internal email urges staff to monitor the listed accounts for red flags “in order to make the Bank safe and protected from the activities of criminals, organized gangs, money launderers and terrorist financiers.”
This compliance advisory comes after the CBN ordered all Nigerian commercial banks to freeze the accounts of certain individuals for purportedly trading in cryptocurrency.
But the FCMB’s memo marked the latest escalation in the enforcement of the CBN’s directive. Section 42 of the Nigerian Constitution prohibits discrimination against citizens under whatever guise. FCMB did not return calls and e-mails seeking comments about the leaked memo to staff members.