Banks and authorised cheque printers who consistently violate cheque standards might face fines of up to N20 million, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The director of the CBN’s banking services division, Hamisu Abdullahi, issued a circular on Thursday informing all deposit money banks (DMBs) and cheque printers of the penalty cost.
“Revised Sanctions on Defaulters of the Nigeria Cheque Standard and Nigeria Cheque Printers’ Accreditation Scheme 2.0” is the headline of the circular, which was issued on February 10 and is also directed to personalizers.
CBN claims that the study is a component of its initiatives to improve the clearing system and match enforcement strategies with the realities of the modern sector.
“Please recall that the Central Bank of Nigeria issued a circular on sanctions to defaulters of the Nigerian Cheque Standards (NCS) and Nigeria Cheque Printers Accreditation Scheme (NICPAS) in 2019,” the circular reads.
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“In furtherance of the Bank’s commitment to increase the efficiency and safety of the Nigeria Clearing System, it has become imperative to review the aforementioned sanction grid to reflect the current realities in the banking industry.”
The regulator stated that commercial banks that use unaccredited check printers run the danger of having the impacted checks removed from circulation and being fined N10 million under the amended sanctions.
According to the CBN, a repeat offence will result in a penalty of N20 million and the checks being withdrawn.
The apex bank said failure or refusal to submit personalised cheque samples for testing and analysis will attract a N5 million fine.
‘N10M FOR NONCOMPLIANCE WITH UNAPPROVED SECURITY STANDARDS’
Stricter sanctions, including a minimum fine of N10,000 per instrument, were also imposed by the CBN for violating security, quality, and encoding regulations.
According to the organization, approved cheque printers and personalizers who add unauthorised security measures risk a fine of N10 million for each feature, with the commercial bank and the printer splitting the cost equally.
Additionally, the apex bank cautioned that if more than 50% of a cheque printing work is subcontracted outside of authorised business continuity or disaster recovery plans, there could be a N20 million fine and potential accreditation revocation for repeated violations.
Regarding regulatory compliance, the CBN stated that check printers will be fined N1 million per day if they do not reply to enquiries within seven days of being warned.
“Suspension of Accreditation for a minimum period of 3 months in the event of continuous default exceeding 21 days after the initial warning,” CBN said.
“Commercial banks that fail to validate MICR data at the point of truncation face a minimum penalty of N10,000 per instrument.”
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The introduction of unapproved watermarked paper, according to the financial authority, will result in the removal of the impacted checks from circulation and a punishment of N20 million; recurring infractions will result in the loss of accreditation.
Since the fines are effective immediately, the CBN instructed all parties involved to adhere to the updated framework.
CBN recommended a five-year ban on serial dud cheque issuers on November 5, 2025.
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