By Adewale Sanyaolu
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), together with the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITAD), raided some platforms loan application for violation of consumer rights.
Some of the companies attacked included GoCash, Okash, EasyCredit, Kashkash, Speedy Choice and Easy Moni.
Leading the raid on some loan application companies in Lagos today, FCCPC Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Mr. Babatunde Irukera said the growing number of consumer complaints regarding the activities of loan application platforms in connection with the violation of privacy and high interest rates decision of the FCCPC to carry out the raid.
He said a situation in which loan application platforms send the names and photos of defaulting debtors to all their telephone contacts without due process and in a way that suggests naming and shaming will no longer be tolerated.
Giving an overview of the increase in the number of loan application platforms, Irukera said that during the COVID-19 lockdown, many households being sued because of the pandemic were in need of concessional loans, where the need for secured loans has become timely.
He lamented that the majority of businesses operate illegally and are not registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the Central Vank of Nigeria to conduct financial transactions in the country.
Work tools, including laptops, were taken away by the FCCPC and other agencies involved in the raid to support their investigation.
Irukera said the agency had been monitoring the companies’ activities for several months, saying it was difficult to identify their operating base.
