The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has appealed to Nigerians to keep their savings in licensed and regulated financial institutions, warning that placing funds with unlicensed managers or unregulated schemes can have devastating consequences.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive of the NDIC, Mr. Thompson Oludare Sunday, made the appeal on Wednesday in a keynote address at the corporation’s Special Day at the 21st Abuja International Trade Fair, organised by the Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture.
Sunday said some Nigerians still keep substantial funds outside the formal banking system or hand their savings to unlicensed fund managers, attracted by promises of extraordinary and unrealistic returns.
He pointed to the repeated collapse of Ponzi schemes as proof of the heavy financial and emotional cost of such choices.
“If an investment promise sounds too good to be true, Nigerians should pause, ask questions and verify before committing their money,” he advised.
The NDIC boss commended the Chamber for sustaining the fair for 21 consecutive years.
He described this year’s theme, “Resilience: Trade, Taxation and the Economy,” as timely and strategic, saying it speaks to an economy undergoing bold reforms in line with the Federal Government’s vision of a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
He said the NDIC has remained a critical pillar of Nigeria’s financial safety net for over three decades through deposit guarantee, bank supervision in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), failure resolution and bank liquidation.
According to him, every thriving business needs a trusted financial system that can safeguard its working capital, facilitate payments and support access to credit.
Sunday recalled that the corporation raised its deposit insurance coverage in 2024. The maximum insured limit is now ₦5 million per depositor per Deposit Money Bank (DMB) and Mobile Money Operator (MMO), and ₦2 million per depositor per Microfinance Bank (MFB), Primary Mortgage Bank (PMB) and Payment Service Bank (PSB).
He said this gives full coverage to over 98 percent of depositors across insured institutions, protecting households, small businesses and other vulnerable depositors from the immediate effects of bank failure.
For depositors whose balances exceed the insured limits, he said the NDIC continues to pay liquidation dividends from the recovery of debts owed to failed institutions and the sale of their physical assets.
“Our objective is straightforward: no depositor should lose confidence in the banking system merely because an insured institution has failed,” he said.
The NDIC chief also said the corporation has moved from manual processes to faster digital reimbursement, using the Bank Verification Number (BVN), Single Customer View (SCV), NIBSS infrastructure and other tools.
Verified depositors of failed banks, he said, now receive their insured deposits within days of bank closure.
He added that the NDIC has positioned itself not merely as a payer of claims after a bank fails but as a Risk Minimizer that identifies vulnerabilities early and works to stop institutional problems from becoming systemic crises.
To this end, the corporation has deployed Risk Based Supervision, an enhanced Differential Premium Assessment System, the SCV Framework, a full distress resolution suite and the Bank Liquidation Management System, alongside stronger collaboration with the CBN and other members of the safety net.
Sunday announced that the NDIC launched an upgraded website, www.ndic.gov.ng, on September 19, 2026. He described it as a one-stop digital gateway for depositors and other stakeholders.
It displays the enhanced coverage limits, offers automated claims processing features and carries an upgraded directory for checking NDIC insured institutions. A one-click Quick Action Bar gives direct access to four key services: File Claim, Check Banks, Report Failed Bank and FAQs. The site also has an AI powered virtual assistant for faster access to information.
“This is more than a website upgrade. It is another step in our journey towards a more accessible, responsive and technology driven NDIC,” he said.
He urged depositors, creditors and shareholders of closed banks to use the digital platforms to process their claims.
Depositors can also speed up reimbursement, he said, by making sure their account information is accurate and consistent across banks and properly linked to their BVNs.
With the new technology, depositors no longer need to visit failed bank premises or NDIC offices for routine physical verification or carry large volumes of documents around.
Sunday stressed that technology and regulation alone cannot guarantee financial security, adding that financial literacy is the first line of defence for every depositor and business owner.
He encouraged businesses and the public to strengthen their financial literacy, embrace digital financial services responsibly, maintain sound financial practices and consult regulators when they need guidance.
He invited participants to visit the NDIC Pavilion at the fair, where officials are providing information on deposit insurance, depositor protection, claims processing and financial literacy.
The NDIC boss congratulated the Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture on hosting the 21st edition of the fair and thanked royal fathers, guests, exhibitors, participants and the media for honouring the corporation’s invitation.
