CBN orders commercial banks to obtain customers’ social media handles for identification

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has mandated commercial banks to obtain the social media handles of customers as additional means of identification.

This was disclosed in the apex bank’s “Customer Due Diligence Regulations 2023” published on CBN website on Friday.

“For Individuals — legal name and any other names used (such as maiden name), permanent address (full physical address), residential address (where the customer can be located), telephone number, e-mail address, and social media handle; date and place of birth, Bank Verification number; Tax Identification number; nationality; occupation; public position held; and name of employer,” the document reads in part.

According to the CBN, the objective of the regulation is to “provide additional customer due diligence measures for financial institutions under the regulatory purview of the Central Bank of Nigeria to further their compliance with relevant provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (MLPPA), 2022, Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (TPPA), 2022, Central Bank of Nigeria (Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Countering Proliferation Financing of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Financial Institutions) Regulations, 2022 (CBN AML, CFT and CPF Regulations) and international best practices.”

If implemented by commercial banks, this development will see Nigerians add their social media accounts to their bank details.