The Nigerian Deposit Insurance Commission (NDIC) on Tuesday restated its commitment to ensuring that insured depositors’ claims on failed microfinance banks (MFBs) and primary mortgage banks (PMBs) would be paid to them.

The corporation’s assurance came on the heels of the recent revocation of licenses of 154, MFBs, and six PMBs, by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

The NDIC said that based on the records obtained on the failed MFBs and MFBs so far, majority of the depositors, especially in the MFBs, had less than N200,000.00 in their accounts, which implied that the NDIC will hopefully cover 100 per cent of the deposited funds in the affected MFBs.

Giving this assurance at the NDIC special day at the ongoing Lagos International Trade Fair, the corporation’s Managing Director, Umaru Ibrahim, said that the CBN revoked the licences due to erosion of their capital base, poor liquidity, inept management, as well as some insider-related abuses in the affected institutions.

Ibrahim pointed out that the unprofessional practices such as workers taking loans without intention to pay back and extravagant lifestyles of the top management staff of most MFBs and PMBs were at variance with the philosophy of microfinance banking operations.

He assured: “The NDIC has commenced verification of insured depositors and will soon start paying the verified claims to appropriate depositors in fulfillment of our core mandate.

“From the record obtained so far, majority of the depositors, especially in the MfBs, have less than N200,000.00 in their accounts, which implied that the NDIC will hopefully cover 100per cent of the deposited funds in the MFBs”, Ibrahim added.