How Viscount lends
Credit for individuals, businesses and institutions, decided on how you actually earn rather than on who you know, priced in the open, and governed by the Central Bank of Nigeria's rules on consumer credit. This page explains how we make lending decisions, what we disclose, and what you can expect from us for the life of a loan.
Credit shaped around how money moves in Nigeria
A microfinance bank exists to lend to the people and businesses that larger banks keep waiting. We structure credit around the way you earn: the stock that turns over, the asset that generates income, the salary that lands on a date, the invoice that pays on delivery.
For individuals
Personal credit for salary earners and self-employed customers, decided on the inflows we can see in your account and repaid on a schedule that matches when you are paid.
For businesses
Finance for stock and cash-flow, for equipment, vehicles and power, and against confirmed contracts and invoices, with repayments matched to the sales cycle rather than the calendar.
For institutions
Asset and operating finance for schools, cooperatives, associations and other organisations with a predictable income cycle, structured around when that income arrives.
Short and long tenors
From a few weeks to bridge a gap, to several years for an asset that pays for itself over time. The tenor follows the purpose, and it is agreed with you before the offer is issued.
Secured and unsecured
Smaller facilities on the strength of your account history alone. Larger ones secured on the asset being financed, a guarantor, or an assignment of the contract or invoice.
Standing limits
For customers with a steady inflow history, a pre-approved limit on the account that can be drawn when needed and repaid as money comes in, with interest only on what is used.
We lend on evidence, and we show our working
Every application goes through the same five checks. For existing customers with a transaction history, most of them are automated and a decision comes back the same day. New customers and larger facilities take longer because there is more to verify.
- Your inflowsWhat comes into your account, how regularly, and from whom. For businesses, card takings and collections count as much as transfers.
- AffordabilityWhether the repayment fits comfortably inside what you earn after your existing commitments. We will not lend more than the evidence supports, whatever the security.
- Credit bureau historyThe CBN requires every bank to obtain reports from at least two licensed credit bureaux before lending. We do, and we tell you if something on your record affected the decision.
- Purpose and timingWhat the money is for and when the purpose starts producing income. This shapes the tenor and the repayment pattern, not just the amount.
- Security, where it is neededAssets are independently valued before disbursement. Guarantors complete the same identity and affordability checks as the borrower.
Everything on the offer letter, nothing off it
The CBN's consumer protection rules require a lender to disclose the full cost of credit before a customer commits. We treat that as the floor, not the ceiling. Every Viscount offer letter sets out the same things in plain language, and if a charge is not on the letter you will not be charged it.
- Interest, and how it is calculatedThe rate, whether it is charged on the reducing balance or the full amount, and the period it is quoted over.
- Every fee, itemisedArrangement, management, insurance and any other charge, each stated separately and each within the limits set by the CBN's Guide to Charges.
- Total cost of creditInterest plus all fees, as one number, so you can compare the offer with any other lender's on the same basis.
- The repayment scheduleEvery instalment, its date, and how much of it is interest and how much is principal.
- Early repayment and late payment termsWhat happens if you settle early, and what it costs if you fall behind, stated before either can happen.
- Your consent to recoveryIncluding the CBN's Global Standing Instruction, which allows a bank to recover a defaulted loan from a borrower's accounts at other banks. It is explained, not buried.
What the Central Bank requires of a lender, and what it means for you
Viscount Microfinance Bank Limited lends under a licence issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria and is examined by the CBN and the NDIC. The rules below are not our policy choices; they are the conditions of the licence. We list them because a customer who knows the rules is better protected by them.
- Licence and supervision
- Licensed as a microfinance bank under the CBN's Revised Regulatory and Supervisory Guidelines for Microfinance Banks. Subject to prudential limits on how much can be lent to any one borrower and to regular on-site examination.
- Consumer protection
- Bound by the CBN's Consumer Protection Framework and Regulations: full disclosure before commitment, fair treatment, a complaints process with deadlines, and a right to escalate to the CBN.
- Charges
- Fees and charges on credit are governed by the CBN's Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial and Non-Bank Financial Institutions. We cannot charge outside it, and we do not.
- Credit bureaux
- Every loan is checked against, and reported to, licensed credit bureaux, as the CBN's credit reporting rules require. Repaying on time builds a record that follows you to any bank.
- Know-your-customer
- Every borrower is identified under the CBN's tiered KYC and anti-money-laundering requirements. Your BVN and identity documents are verified before any facility is opened.
- Recovery conduct
- Collection must follow CBN guidance. We do not contact your family, friends or colleagues about your loan, and we do not use threats or public disclosure. A complaint about recovery conduct is treated as seriously as one about money.
- Data
- Application and repayment data is processed under the Nigeria Data Protection Act. It is used to make and manage your loan and to meet reporting obligations, and for nothing else.
- Complaints
- Raise a complaint with us and you receive a reference number. If it is not resolved within fourteen working days you may escalate to the CBN's Consumer Protection Department.
What you can expect from us after the money lands
A loan is a relationship that lasts months or years. These are the commitments we make for all of it.
Always visible
Balance, next instalment, amount paid and amount outstanding, in the app at any time. A statement for any period on request.
Repay early if you can
Settle part or all of a loan ahead of schedule on the terms stated in your offer letter, and the schedule updates immediately.
Talk to us before a missed payment
If you can see a difficult month coming, tell us before the due date. A restructured schedule agreed in advance is not a default and is not reported as one.
A record that works for you
Every on-time repayment is reported to the credit bureaux. Your next facility, with us or anyone else, is larger, faster and cheaper because of it.
From a conversation to money in the account
Most credit starts with a Viscount account, because the account is where the evidence lives. From there the process is the same for everyone.
Tell us what you need
The amount, what it is for and when the purpose starts earning. In the app for most customers; with a relationship manager for businesses and institutions. Any question along the way goes through the support portal.
We assess
Inflows, affordability, credit bureau history, purpose and any security, on the basis set out above. You are told what we looked at.
You read the offer
Rate, fees, schedule, total cost of credit and terms, in one document. Ask us to change the tenor or amount and we re-issue it.
Money lands, schedule starts
Disbursement into your Viscount account once you accept. Repayments run on the agreed dates and show in the app throughout.
About borrowing from a microfinance bank
How is a microfinance bank different from a loan app?+
Why does the bank check credit bureaux?+
What is the Global Standing Instruction?+
Can the bank change the rate after I have signed?+
What happens if I cannot pay?+
How do I complain about a lending decision or a charge?+
Credit begins with an account
Open a Viscount account and the evidence for a lending decision builds from the first credit. When you are ready, the application is a conversation, not a form that goes nowhere.
- Full cost of credit on every offer letter
- Affordability assessed before any offer is made
- Regulated by the CBN, with a complaints path to the regulator
