CB obliges banks to inform customers about blocking their cards by BCE

Banks of Uzbekistan will be required to inform customers about blocking of their cards by the Bureau of Compulsory Enforcement (BCE) no later than one business day from its inception, the Central Bank said.

Lack of notification by commercial banks to citizens about the seizure or blocking of an account or suspension of operations on their bank card accounts are elements of unfair practice in providing deposit services to their customers, the regulator notes.

The Central Bank adheres to the position according to which each depositor (bank card holder) has the right to rely on the bank to inform him in a timely manner of a change in the conditions for the provision of deposit services, including due to an arrest or blocking of a deposit account. And the bank, in turn, will follow standards of ethical behavior in relations with customers and timely notify about actions regarding their accounts.

In this regard, on October 26 of the current year, the Central Bank’s Board approved amendments to the legislation, according to which, in case the bank suspends operations on bank accounts or deposits, including bank cards of a client (except for cases when bank cards are blocked due to incorrect PIN code entry), the bank is obliged not later than the next business day from the date of suspension of operations on the bank account and deposit to send the owner information on the suspension of operations on the account indicating the reasons.

Currently, these amendments are sent to the Justice Ministry for state registration in accordance with the established order.