The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) says it has paid 82.36 per cent of depositors with above N5 million as insured sum in the defunct Heritage Bank.

NDIC spokesman Bashir Nuhu, in a statement on Sunday, said the step underscored the corporation’s commitment to safeguarding depositors’ funds.

NDIC noted that payments commenced within four days of the bank’s closure. The corporation said the direct payment method marked a historic shift in its approach to reimbursing depositors promptly.

It said while the majority of insured deposits had been paid, the NDIC was working to reach the remaining 17.64 per cent of insured depositors.

The statement noted that many of the remaining depositors had accounts with post-no-debit instructions, lacked BVN, or had no alternative accounts.

According to the statement, the corporation is actively engaging these depositors through phone calls and text messages and acknowledged the challenges posed by unpaid uninsured deposits, representing a larger portion of the total deposits.

The statement assured the public that the NDIC was working to recover assets and debts to facilitate payments to the depositors through liquidation dividends.

It said once all insured and uninsured deposits were settled, NDIC would proceed with payments to creditors according to legal priority.

It reaffirmed the corporation’s dedication to protecting depositors’ funds and urged the public to continue banking confidently.

(NAN)