Section 43-48 BOFIA 2020
Section 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 and 48 of the Bank and Other Financial Institutions Act 2020 is under Part V (GENERAL AND SUPPLEMENTAL) of the Act.
Section 43 BOFIA 2020
Restriction on the use of certain names
(1) Except with the written consent of the Board of the Central Bank of Nigeria —
(a) no bank shall, be registered or incorporated with a tribal or ethnic name or any name which includes the words “Central” “Federal,” Federation, “National”, “Nigeria”, “Reserve”, “State”, “Christian”, “Islamic”, “Muslim”, “Quranic”, or “Biblical”
(b) no person other than a bank licensed under this Act shall use or continue to use the word “bank” or any of its derivatives, either in English or in any other language in the description or title under which the person is carrying on business in Nigeria;
(c) no person with objects to offer payments and or other financial services required by this Act shall be registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission with the word fintech or any of its derivatives either in English or in any other language included in the description or title under which the person is carrying on business in Nigeria.
(2) Every bank shall use as part of its description or title the word “bank” or anyone or more of its derivatives, either in English or in any other language.
(3) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to any registered association of banks, bankers or bank employees formed for the protection of their mutual interest or in furtherance or promotion of education and training of personnel
of financial institutions in Nigeria.
(4) Any person who acts in contravention of this section is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine of not less than N2, 000,000 and N100, 000 for each day during which the offence continues.
Section 44 BOFIA 2020
General restriction on advertisement
(1) No person other than a bank or any other person authorised to take deposits shall issue any advertisement inviting the public to deposit money with it.
(2) Any person who issues an advertisement in contravention of the provisions of subsection (1) of this section is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of not less than 5 years or a fine of the higher of N50,
000,000 or two times the cumulative deposits or other amount collected on account of any such advertisement or to both such imprisonment and penalty.
(3) All advertisements issued by any bank shall be in compliance with regulations on advertisements issued by the Bank from time to time.
(4) Any bank which fails to comply with the provisions of subsection (3) of this section shall be liable to a penalty of N5,000,000 and an additional penalty of N100, 000 for each day during which the infraction continues.
(5) In this Act, “advertisement” includes any form of advertising whether in publication or by the display of notice or by means of circular or other documents or by any exhibition of photographs or cinematograph or by way of sound broadcasting or television or loudspeakers or other public address systems or electronic mail or internet or other electronic media.
(6) An advertisement which contains information calculated to lead directly or indirectly to the deposit of money by the public shall be treated as an advertisement inviting the public to deposit money.
(7) An advertisement issued by any person on behalf of or to the order of another person shall be treated as an advertisement issued by that other person and for the purpose of any proceedings under this Act, an advertisement inviting the public to deposit money with a person specified in the advertisement shall be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been issued by the person.
Section 45 BOFIA 2020
Closure of bank during a strike, an epidemic or pandemic
(1) No bank, specialised bank or other financial institution shall incur any liability to any of its customers by reason only of failure on the part of the bank, specialised bank or other financial institution to open for business during a strike, an
epidemic or pandemic.
(2) If as a result of a strike, an epidemic or pandemic, a bank, specialised bank, or other financial institution fails to open for business, the bank specialised bank or other financial institution shall, within 24 hours of the beginning of the
closure, obtain the approval of the Bank for any continued closure.
Section 46 BOFIA 2020
Prohibition of the receipt of commissions etc by staff of banks
(1) Any director, manager, officer or employee of a bank or any other person receiving remuneration from the bank, who solicits, receives, consents or agrees to receive any gift, commission, employment, service, gratuity, money, property
or thing of value for his own personal benefit or advantage or for that of any of his relations, from any person —
(a) for procuring or endeavouring to procure for any person any advances, loans or credit facility from the bank; or
(b) for the purpose of the purchase or discount of any draft, note, cheque, bill of exchange or other obligation by that bank; or
(c) for permitting any person to overdraw any account with that bank without proper authority or compliance with rules and guidelines for that purpose; or
(d) for any other service rendered in line with his duty as an employee of the bank; is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine of N5, 000,000 or imprisonment for a term of 5 years or to both such fine and imprisonment and in addition any such gift or other commission shall be forfeited to the bank.
(2) The provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall not in any manner derogate from, and shall be without prejudice to any other written law relating to corruption or illegal gratification.
Section 47 BOFIA 2020
Disqualification and Exclusion of Certain Individuals from Management of Banks
(1) Every bank shall, before appointing any director, chief executive, or management staff of such grades may be specified from time to time by the Bank seek and obtain the Bank’s written approval for the proposed appointment.
(2) No bank, shall employ or continue the employment of any person as a director, manager, secretary or an officer who
—
(a) is of unsound mind or as a result of ill health is incapable of carrying out his duties; or
(b) is dismissed from the service of the Federal, State or Local Government or any of the agencies of such government; or
(c) is declared bankrupt or suspends payments or compounds with his creditors including his bankers;
(d) is convicted of any offence involving dishonesty or fraud; or
(e) is guilty of serious misconduct in relation to his duties; or
(f) in the case of a person who possesses a professional qualification, is disqualified or suspended otherwise than of his own request) from practicing his profession by the order of any competent authority made in respect of him personally.
(3) No person who has been a director of or directly concerned in the management of a bank which has been wound up by the Federal High Court shall, without the express authority of the Governor, act or continue to act as a director of, or be directly concerned in the management of any other bank.
(4) Any person whose appointment with a bank has been terminated or who has been dismissed for reasons of fraud, dishonesty or convicted for an offence involving dishonesty or fraud shall not be employed by any bank in Nigeria.
(5) The Bank shall have power to remove from office any person to whom any of the provisions of subsection (2) of this section applies
Provided that in the case of paragraphs (b) to (f), the Bank may also prohibit any such person from serving on the Board of, or from managing, or from being employed by any institution under its supervision.
(6) Any bank which acts in breach of this section has committed an infraction and is liable to a penalty of not less than N5,000,000 and an additional N100,000 for each day during which the infraction continues.
(7) Where a bank is in breach of this section with the knowledge or connivance of any director, manager, secretary or any other officer of the bank, such officer, shall be liable to a penalty of not less than N2,000,000.
(8) Every institution regulated under this Act shall be required to submit to the Bankers’ Committee Secretariat or any other body or office designated by the Bank, not later than two weeks after the date of termination or dismissal of any staff, the name, designation, reasons for termination or dismissal and any other information that may be required by the Bankers’ Committee Secretariat.
(9) It shall not be a defence for any director, manager or officer of a bank to claim that he is not aware of the provisions of subsection (4) of this section, unless such director, manager or officer can prove that prior clearance had been obtained for such a person from the Secretary of the Bankers’ Committee Secretariat who maintains a register of terminated, dismissed or convicted staff of banks on the ground of fraud or dishonesty.
Section 48 BOFIA 2020
Offences by Companies, etc. and by servants and agents
(1) Where any offence against any provision of this Act has been committed by a body corporate or firm, any person who was a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate or firm purporting to and in such capacity shall, in addition to the body corporate or firm, be deemed to be guilty of that offence unless he proves that the offence was committed without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of the offence as he ought to have exercised having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all the circumstances.
(2) Where any person would be liable under this Act to any punishment or penalty for any act, omission, neglect or default, he shall be liable to the same punishment or penalty for every such act, omission, neglect or default of any clerk, servant or agent of the clerk or servant of such agent:
Provided that such act, omission, neglect or default was committed by the clerk or servant in the course of his employment or by the agent when acting in the course of his employment in such circumstances that has the act, omission, neglect or default been committed by the agent, his principal would have been liable under this section.
