Experts Laud CBN’s Policy Against Loan Defaulters

Financial experts say Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) proposed policy that will ensure that loan defaulters forfeit their deposits in other banks is commendable.
They said this in separate interviews with The Tide source in Abuja.
Mr Solomon Itodo, a financial expert said the policy was a good one if it could be implemented fully and all parties involved have clearly defined roles.
He said: “It will boost lenders’ confidence knowing that repayment is not tied only to accounts being operated with them.
“This, however, is dependent on the level of cooperation among banks given the level of competition for customer patronage.
“Unless there are sanctions which will apply for non compliance or access to carry out debits by the creditor from these accounts, this will just be another policy with good intentions and no real substance.”
Itodo, however, said that the full provisions of the policy should be made known; otherwise erring debtors would easily circumvent it in a number of ways like operating accounts in different company names or having accounts operated by proxies.
He added that to make the policy work, accounts which should be considered as payment accounts should include personal accounts and accounts of companies with directors.
Another financial expert, Mrs Grace Audu, said it would serve as a deterrent to people who collect loan from one bank and then disappear to go start another account in another bank.