BY FESTUS OKOROMADU
In a move considered a signal to all financial services providers in the country, especially banks; where the customers are often left in pickles, the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal sitting in Abuja has fined Stanbic IBTC Bank the sum of N120 million for contravening Section 130 (1) (a) of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2018.
The bank was fined for failing to complete a NIBSS Instant Payment transfer request and withholding the consumer’s funds beyond the 10-minute reversal regulation for failed NIBSS Instant Payment electronic funds transfer.
Delivering judgment in a case instituted by Clement Osuya against Stanbic IBTC, Mrs Sola Salako Ajulo, found Stanbic IBTC liable for a breach of contract and duty of care owed the Claimant for failing to complete an instruction to transfer the sum of N500,000 to another account in Access Bank and failing to reverse the failed transaction within 10- minutes as stipulated by the 2018 CBN Regulation on NIBSS Interbank Electronic Funds Transfer but withheld the consumer’s funds for up to 24 and 72 hours consecutively in two failed instant electronic transfer transactions.
Stanbic IBTC in its defence, claimed the transaction failed on the NIBSS Instant Payments platform and not on its own platform and as such, it cannot be held liable for negligence or a breach of its duty of care to the
Claimant.
The Tribunal in its decision averred that an “instant” platform should not take 24 or 72 hours to reverse a failed transaction and the Defendant did not provide the court any documentary evidence to prove that the transfer failed on the NIBSS Instant Payment Platform and not on Stanbic IBTC platform.
By violating the CBN Regulation, the Consumer Tribunal held the bank in contravention of Section 130 (1) (a) &(b) of the FCCPA 2018 which granted the consumer the right to expect timely and completed services from an undertaking who had agreed to provide any service to him.
The three-man panel comprising Chu’ma Mbonu, Member (South East) presiding, Mrs. Sola Salako Ajulo Member (South West) and Ibrahim El Yakubu, Member (North West) delivered a 2-1 ruling affirming the jurisdiction of the Tribunal to hear the suit before proceeding to enter judgement in favour of the Claimant.
A preliminary objection filed by the Defendant, challenged the original jurisdiction of the Tribunal to hear the case, arguing that the matter was a bank/customer dispute which was in the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal or State High Court but the Tribunal held that it had concurrent jurisdiction to hear the substantive suit as can be clearly deduced from S.39(1) (2) and S. 45, which conferred on the Tribunal, the status of a High Court dedicated to adjudicate Competition and Consumer Protection conducts prohibited by the FCCPA.
In a minority opinion, the Presiding Member, Chu’ma Mbonu supported the Defendant’s preliminary objection claiming that the CCPT had only appellate jurisdiction and cannot hear an originating application in the form of the suit before it.
The lead judgment resolved four issues in favour of the Claimant and one issue in favour of the Defendant.
The Tribunal awarded N5 million in general damages to the Claimant as well as a cost of N1 million Naira being cost for litigation against the Defendant.
