Terms and Conditions

Introduction

These Terms shall govern your access to, and use of the services provided by Aku Micro-Finance Bank Limited (Aku) which include all pages within our website, mobile applications and other products and services (collectively referred to as the “Services”). By clicking to accept this Agreement, you agree to be bound by this Agreement, consent to electronic communications and agree to our Privacy and Cookie Policy in full and without limitation or qualification.

These Terms also highlight certain risks on using our services and you must consider such risks carefully as you will be bound by the provision of this Agreement through your use of our services. We therefore oblige you to thoroughly read these Terms carefully before agreeing to be bound by them. You must not use any of the Services if you have any objection to any of these Terms.

Aku reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to amend these Terms and Conditions, at any time. It is therefore your continuous responsibility to review these Terms and Conditions periodically for any changes. Your continued use of the Site following the posting of changes will mean that you unconditionally accept and agree to the changes. As long as you comply with these Terms and Conditions, Aku grants you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, limited privilege to use the Services provided

The headings contained in this document are for reference purposes only.

2.0. Parties to this Agreement

This Agreement is a contract between you (“You”, “Your”) and Aku Micro-Finance Bank Limited (“Aku”, “We”, “Us”, “Our”) (each individually a “Party”, and collectively the “Parties”). We are a full-service digital microfinance bank duly licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (“CBN”). Our registered office is at Old Union Bank Building, Opposite Local Government, Head-Quarters, Ajalli, Anambra State.

This Agreement governs Your non-transferable (unless with our prior written consent) use of the Aku Mobile App, Aku website, and any features and products that Aku may make available to You through the Aku application or website (collectively, our “Services”).

3.0. Change of Information

In the event of any change in your personal information or business provided to us at registration/onboarding, you agree to notify us within 5 days of such change. We may be unable offer our services to you if you contact us from an address, telephone number or email account that is not registered with Us.

4.0 Eligibility

By signing on to use our Services, you are warranting that you are not a person barred from receiving services under the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. If you are accepting these Terms and using the Services on behalf of a business or organization, you represent and warrant that you are authorized to do so.

Our Services are available only to people aged 18 or over. Individuals under the age of 18, may utilize the service only with the involvement of a parent or legal guardian, under such person’s account and subject to these Terms. The User must have the contractual capacity to enter a binding contract with us and must not be barred from doing so under any applicable laws. You also warrant that any registration information that you submit to us is true, accurate and complete. You shall indemnify us against any losses we incur in connection with your breach of this section.

5.0. Account Opening

You can register/open account with us via an Aku Agent, USSD or via the mobile application on your smart device, on the condition that you are at least 18 years old and a Nigerian citizen. You must register an account with valid information. To benefit and use Aku services, you must:

(a) provide a valid mobile phone number and BVN;

(b) agree to the creation of an account associated with such number;

(c) accept the terms and conditions contained herein and;

(d) submit any other additional information as may be requested during registration.

You agree to provide true, accurate and complete information about yourself as prompted during the account registration process.

You will receive a generic Personal Identification Number (PIN) and will be prompted to change/create a unique PIN for the purpose of reusing and securing your account. You are responsible for keeping your PIN secure. Your personal information is highly protected in accordance with our Privacy Policy published and updated on our platforms.

Our services shall only be made available to you once our KYC (Know Your Customer) process has been complied with by you and your identification has been verified. When you choose to open an account, you agree to Us using your information to make and receive payments on your behalf through your Aku Account.

6.0. Onboarding Requirements (KYC)

To meet our Know Your Customer (“KYC”) and Anti-Money Laundering (“AML”) obligations, we may require you to provide any or all the following:

(a) Your full name (as it appears on your government issued ID)

(b) Your date of birth, your Bank Verification Number (“BVN”);

(c) Your current residential address; your picture

(c) Your current residential address; your picture

(d) Copy of a valid Government issued ID (national ID, international passport, permanent voter’s card or driver’s license); a copy of recent utility bill, dated within three months of our request, which carries your name and address;

(e) Any other information or document as we may require for our internal risk assessment.

You warrant that all information and documentation provided to us are true, correct, and accurate.

You hereby authorize Aku to verify information provided by you against the information held by any third party (including official databases) such as, NIBBS, Government Identity Databases (NIMC etc.) any other information bank available to Us. We reserve the right to request for further information from you pertaining to your use of the Services at any time. Failure to provide such information within the time required may result in Us declining to accept your application for an Account or access to our Services.

The table below outlines the customer tier classification and applicable transaction limits Aku adopts based on KYC levels. You are not authorized to withdraw, transfer or make any payments that together exceed any of the per transaction or daily limits defined for your category. Should you attempt to exceed any applicable limits, your transactions will be declined.

7.0 Transacting on your Account

Upon successful creation of your account, a Bank Account Number will be assigned to you. The account number will be required when you or a third party intend to fund your account. Your account may also be funded by Aku if your approved loan is disbursed into your account. All transactions will be processed in Nigerian local currency i.e., Naira and Kobo.

You may transfer funds in your account to other accounts on the Aku Mobile App, and to any bank account within Nigeria.

We may not process your transfer or payment if:

(a) Your instructions are unclear.

(b) There are insufficient funds in your account to perform the required transaction.

(c) In our sole opinion, suspect a criminal, fraudulent or illegal activity on your Aku Account.

(d) It exceeds any prescribed limits on your account

(e) Your account is dormant

(f) We are prohibited or restricted from doing so in accordance with the payment system regulations or any applicable law in Nigeria.

You may be required to set a password/Personal Identification Number (PIN) to carry out transactions using the account. When you enter your password to confirm a transaction, you confirm that we may treat the transaction as having been authorized. You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your PIN and login details of your Account. You must protect the secrecy of your PIN and login details and prevent fraudulent use of the same.

As required by the CBN and contained in the table in Clause 6 above, there are daily limits on your Account or Wallet. You can increase or reduce these limits by providing Aku with the required information.

8.0 Notifications

By opening an account with us, you consent to receiving text (SMS), email and push notifications from us. These notifications are meant for your consumption only and we will not be held liable if you suffer any loss, or damage as a result of unauthorised access to the information sent. In addition, by opening this account, you agree to opt out of mandatory SMS alerts directed by the CBN in favor of push notifications. You agree to indemnify Aku against all losses, damages, claims, demands and expenses whatsoever which may be incurred, imposed or suffered by the Bank as well as against all actions, proceedings or claims (including attorney's fees) whether civil or criminal, which may be brought against Aku by reason of such notifications.

9.0 Prohibited Transactions

In addition to other terms as set forth in the Agreement, you are absolutely prohibited from using our Services for the following:

(a) To submit false or misleading information;

(b) To unlawfully collect or track the personal information of others;

(c) To solicit others to perform or participate in any unlawful acts;

(d) For any obscene or immoral purpose

(e) To violate any international, federal, provincial or state regulations, rules, laws, or local ordinances;

(f) To infringe upon or violate our intellectual property rights or the intellectual property rights of others;

(g) To harass, abuse, insult, harm, defame, slander, disparage, intimidate, or discriminate based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, race, age, national origin, or disability;

(h) To upload or transmit viruses or any other type of malicious code that will or may be used in any way that will affect the functionality or operation of the Service or of any related mobile application, other mobile applications, or the Internet;

(i) To interfere with or circumvent the security features of the Service or any related mobile application, other mobile applications, or the Internet; or

(j) To perform activities defined as illegal by the CBN and laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Aku does not deal in crypto currencies and does not facilitate payments for crypto currency transactions and other related transactions. You, therefore, confirm that you will not use your Aku account to deal in, trade, transact or receive any payments relating to virtual currencies.

We reserve the right to terminate your use of our Services or any related mobile application for violating any of our prohibited uses or for performing acts that we in our sole opinion consider unlawful or unethical.

10.0 Our Products

i. AkuPay: With AkuPay you will be able to fund your Aku account via bank transfers, USSD, and deposit cash into your Aku account through the Aku QR Card, Aku Mobile App and via selected partner banks registered on your Aku Mobile App. You will also be able to pay bills, and make withdrawals from your Aku account and other selected partner banks. These activities are however subject to any applicable transaction limits placed on your account.

ii. Wealth: Our Wealth products are exclusively designed to promote unlimited income generation for our users. Upon your enrolment on the Aku Mobile App, you will have access to enjoy the following rewards (amongst others):

(a) Inflow Bonus

(b) Sign on Bonus and;

(c) Referral Bonus

11. Anti-Fraud

You agree and acknowledge that where the funds in your account have been flagged as or are suspected of being fraudulent in nature, Aku may immediately suspend your account and retain the funds pending an investigation.

You consent to us applying restrictions on your account and reporting to law enforcement agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, the Nigerian Police Force, etc., if a fraudulent activity is associated with the operation of your account.

You consent to us reporting to Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement Systems Plc (NIBBS) for update on the Watchlist Database of the Nigerian Banking Industry and the CBN if a fraudulent activity is associated with the operation of your account.

12. IMS Policy Statement

The Board and Management of Aku MFB which operates in the Financial Technology sector is committed to preserving the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of all physical and electronic information assets throughout the organization, in order to preserve its asset, legal, and regulatory as well as contractual, compliance and image. The Integrated Management Systems (ISO 27001, and ISO 22301) requirements will continue to be aligned with organizational goals and is also intended to be an enabling mechanism for information sharing, electronic operations, and reducing information & Technology related risks to acceptable levels.

Aku MFB is committed to providing quality services to our customers, both internal and external by aligning Information Technology investments with organizational goals. Aku MFB has aligned its processes and operations to the ISO27001, ISO22301, standards and PCI-DSS requirements to ensure business continuity, cyber resilience, and protection of its information asset and maximization of benefit/returns on IT investments.

It is, therefore, Aku MFB’s policy to ensure:

- Aku MFB’s current strategy and Integrated Management Systems (IMS) provides the context for identifying, assessing, evaluating, and controlling information/process/service-related risks through establishment and maintenance of the IMS. The risk assessment and risk treatment plan capture how identified risks are controlled in alignment with Aku MFB’s risk management strategy.

- In particular, business continuity and contingency plans, data backup procedures, access control to systems and information security incident reporting are fundamental to this policy. All employees of Aku MFB shall have the responsibility of reporting incidents.

- All employees of Aku MFB and external parties identified in the Management Systems are expected to comply with this policy. All staff and certain external parties will receive or be required to provide evidence of receiving appropriate training.

- Management is committed to the continual improvement of the IMS in the Organizations.

- Breach of the policy or security mechanism may warrant disciplinary measures, up to and including termination of employment/contract as well as legal action in line with the Cybercrime Prohibition Act 2015.

13. Disclaimer

WE TRY TO KEEP OUR SERVICES AVAILABLE AT ALL TIMES, BUG-FREE AND SAFE, HOWEVER, YOU USE IT AT YOUR OWN RISK.

WE PROVIDE OUR SERVICES “AS IS” WITH NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, OF ANY KIND (INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OR CONDITION OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AVAILABILITY, SECURITY, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS). WITHOUT LIMITING THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING, WE MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT OUR SERVICES WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS OR THAT OUR WEBSITE WILL REMAIN FREE FROM ANY INTERRUPTION, BUGS, INACCURACIES, AND ERROR FREE.

YOUR USE OF OUR SERVIES ARE AT YOUR OWN RISK AND YOU SHALL BE SOLE RESPOSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE THAT RESULTS IN LOSS OF DATA OR ANY OTHER KIND OF DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER OR MOBILE DEVICE. NO ADVICE NOR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN OBTAINED BY THE USE OF OUR SERVICES WILL AMOUNT TO A WARRANTY OR CONDITION NOT EXPRESSLY STATED.

14. Limitation of Liability

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCE SHALL AKU BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL PUNITIVE, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, INCLUDING DAMAGES RESULTING FROM REVENUE LOSS, PROFIT LOSS, USE, DATA, GOODWILL , BUSINESS INTERRUPTION OR ANY OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES (WHETHER OR NOT WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH) ARISING OUT OF OUR SERVICES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION TO INABILITY TO USE, OR ARISING FROM THE RESULT OF USE OF OUR SERVICES) WHETHER SUCH DAMAGES ARE BASED ON WARRANTY, TORT, CONTRACT, STATUTE OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY.

15. Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise stated, Aku owns all intellectual property rights and materials on our website and Mobile Applications (together referred to as ‘our Platforms’). All text, formatting (including without limitation the arrangement of materials on our Platforms and the graphics, animation, tools, commercials, music, video, articles, sound, copy, trade names, logos and other materials and information on our Platforms remain the sole property of Aku. We do not grant you any right, license, title or interest to any of our intellectual Property rights which you may or may not have access to.

Content on our Platforms may not be copied, reverse engineered, decompiled, disassembled, modified or reposted to other websites. Nothing on our website should be construed as granting by implication or otherwise, any license or right to use any trademark displayed on our website without our written permission or that of such third party that may own the trademark. You agree to take such actions including executing any and all documents that may be needed to further affirm our intellectual property rights.

16. Privacy Policy

Your privacy is important to us. Aku takes the matters of protection and security of its users’ information very seriously. Aku’s privacy policy governing the service is attached to these Terms (“Privacy Policy”). The Privacy Policy is incorporated into these Terms by this reference. By using our Services, you agree to the use of your data in accordance with our Privacy Policy. The Privacy Policy addresses only the information collected by Aku in providing our Services to you.

By opening this account, you consent to us processing your personal information:

i. to provide products and services to you in terms of this agreement and any other products and services for which you may apply; and

ii. to carry out statistical and other analyses to identify potential markets and trends, evaluate and improve our business (this includes improving existing and developing new products and services);

17. Marketing and Promotion

We may also use your personal or other information to share information with you on new products and services that may be of interest to you. By opening an account with us, you consent to us sending you updates about Aku products and services. You can unsubscribe from our newsletter using the link provided for the purpose in each newsletter we send.

18. Anti-Corruption

Each Party shall comply with all applicable anti-bribery and corruption Laws in Nigeria (including the Economic and Financial Crime Commission’s Act).

19. Indemnity

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold Aku, its officers, directors, employees, agents, licensors, and suppliers, harmless from and against any claims, actions or demands, liabilities and settlements including without limitation, reasonable legal and accounting fees, resulting from, or alleged to result from, your violation of these Terms and Conditions.

20. Termination

You may wish to terminate this Agreement by closing your Aku Account or simply discontinuing the use of our Services.

We reserve the right to suspend or permanently terminate your Aku Account and your access to our Services in the event of any of the following;

(a) Your failure to comply with any of the provisions of this Agreement;

(b) As required by Law and other Regulatory Agencies; or

(c) Where a suspicious or fraudulent transaction occurs on your Account

21. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

The laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria govern this Agreement. We shall use our best endeavor to settle any dispute or difference of opinion arising from or in connection with the use of our services amicably through mutual discussions

Any dispute that cannot be settled within a period of Fourteen (14) days, shall, be settled before a Sole Arbitrator to be appointed by a mutual written agreement of both parties in accordance with the Arbitration Rules of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, Cap. A18, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 (or any amendments or modification to the same).

The venue of Arbitration shall be Lagos Nigeria and shall be in English Language.

Each party shall bear their respective costs in connection with the Arbitration.

22. Miscellaneous Provisions

If any portion of these Terms is held by any court or tribunal to be invalid or unenforceable, either in whole or in part, then that part shall be severed from these Terms and shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other part in these Terms.

All agreements, notices, disclosures, and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not be deemed a waiver of such right or provision.

23. Contact Us

If you have any questions about your relationship with Aku, you can contact us via email via mail at contact@aku.africa