How to Stop Loan Apps From Accessing Your Bank Account

With the advent of technology, it has become easier to access loans without much hassle. However, some loan apps take advantage of the access they have to borrowers’ bank accounts to deduct money from it and sometimes continue to deduct even after the loan has been fully repaid.

This has left many people wondering how to stop loan apps from accessing their bank accounts. In this post, we will explore some practical ways to safeguard your bank account from unauthorized access by loan apps.

How Do Loan Apps Access Your Bank Accounts?

All loan apps can gain access to your bank account and deduct money from it through the ATM card you linked when signing up.

For registered loan apps, however, they can also gain access to all bank accounts associated with you via your BVN, and with a Global Standing Instruction (GSI), withdraw the principal loan amount as well as the interest accrued from any of the qualifying banks belonging to you.

What is a Global Standing Instruction (GSI)?

A Global Standing Instruction (GSI) is a regulation introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2020 to improve loan recovery and reduce the Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio in the banking sector. The GSI allows banks to recover outstanding debts from borrowers’ accounts across all banks in Nigeria, using the borrowers’ Bank Verification Number (BVN) as a unique identifier.

Under the GSI, borrowers who have taken loans from banks and are in default for 90 days or more will have their outstanding debts deducted from their accounts in other banks. This means that if as a borrower, you default on a loan with Bank A, Bank A can use the GSI to recover the debt from your account with Bank B, Bank C, or any other bank in Nigeria where you have an account linked to your BVN.

How to Stop Loan Apps From Accessing Your Bank Account

To prevent loan apps from getting access and deducting money from your bank account, all you need do is walk into your bank branch, meet a customer care representative, and tell him/her that you would like to block/deactivate your current ATM card and get a new one.

If you are asked why, you can explain the situation to them about how a loan app is deducting money from your account, or you can simply tell them you lost the card. But by all means, make sure to block the card and use a new pin for the new card.

But be aware that this does not apply to CBN-licensed loan companies as those can still deduct the money you owe from any bank account associated with you whether you change your ATM card or not.

Conclusion

In summary, loan apps offer a convenient and accessible means to obtain loans. However, it is essential to take steps to safeguard your bank account from unauthorized access by these apps. When you link your card to a loan app during the loan application process, you grant the app permission to deduct payments when due. To avoid this, you can request that your card be deactivated at your bank to prevent further unauthorized withdrawals by loan apps.

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