Our current account allows unrestricted transactions to be made from cleared funds and as well as allows overdraw of the account under the agreed terms and conditions. Allowing unrestricted transactions from withdrawal to payments made by means of cheques issued by the bank or corporate cheques by the accountholders.
Following are the basic requirements relating to the operation and maintenance of a current account as well as some useful guidelines to safeguard your account.
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Who can open a Current Account?
Individual:
- Should be 18 years old or above
- No bankruptcy declared
- Possess sound mind and has the mental and physical capacity to operate the account properly
Business / Society / Club / Association / Company professional:
Accounts for business owners and professional entities must ensure that they are properly registered with the relevant authorities. However, bank has the discretion to accept or decline an application to open the account.
General requirements to open a Current Account
- Applicant / appropriate person(s) must be physically present at the bank
- An introducer acceptable to the bank (This is to enable the bank to obtain references on you. Normally, the introducer is an existing customer or someone known to the bank)
- Valid identification documents such as your Identity Card or Driving Licence to substantiate your identity
- An initial deposit by cash as specified by your bank
- Accounts for business / society / club / association / company professional registered with professional bodies, are required to provide the business registration, board resolution, memorandum and articles of association, share allotment form and list of directors and secretary (for company account) or list of current board / committee members (for society account)
Types of Current Account
For an individual, you can open the following current accounts:
Personal current account under your name or Joint current account which is operated by you jointly with others depending on the operational instructions given. e.g. any one of the account holders to operate the account (e.g., for an account opened by A and B, either A or B is required to sign) in conformity of either or survivors instructions provided.
In the event all accountholders are required to operate the account (e.g., for an account opened by A, B,C all of them are required to sign).
For a business / company
The current account will be in the name of the business and it is operated by nominated signatory(ies) in accordance with resolutions from board of directors, governing body/committee.
Usage of a Current Account
You can start using your current account once it is approved by the bank. Withdrawals from your account (subject to the available balance in the account) can be made either through cheques or ATM cards (issued to individual accountholders only) or by electronic means. There is no need to maintain the initial deposit amount i.e. the minimum amount required to open the account, once your account is in operation. You do not earn interest on the balance in your current account, however to any amount overdrawn interest will be charged to the account at the prevailing rate.
Signatories and changes to Signatories
When you open a current account, the bank will require your specimen signature. The bank will compare your signature on the cheque issued by you against this specimen signature. If the signature is different, the bank will refuse to pay the cheque and return the cheque on the ground that “signature differs”.
For a joint current account, all the account-holders’ signatures must be provided together with specific instructions as to who can operate the joint account.
For current accounts operated by a business / company, specimen signature(s) of person(s) authorized to sign cheques on behalf of the business / company and the extent of their authority, must be provided in the form of a mandate or resolution. Any changes to the signatories must be conveyed to the bank immediately in writing by the accountholder. In addition, an extract copy of the Board / Committee Resolution stipulating the change, effective date of change and signatures in accordance with the conditions of the account must be given to the bank. The Resolution must be certified by the company secretary and signed by the quorum of directors as provided for in the Memorandum and Articles of Association.
Duties and Responsibilites of an Accountholder
- Keep your account numbers confidential
- keep your account statements in a safe and secure place
- Safeguard and keep confidential all PINs issued
- Destroy or shred cancelled cheques
- Inform the bank immediately of :
– Any change of address
– Any change of telephone number
– Loss of any cheque / cheque book
– Any discrepancy in your bank statement
Closure of a Current Account
An account can be closed under the following circumstances:
- On accountholder's request – accountholder must provide a written request and return any unused cheque leaves for cancellation
- On discretion of the bank – We may close your account if you regularly issue dishonoured cheques or if your account is inactive (dormant account). In such cases, the account will only be closed after sufficient notices have been given in writing to the accountholder. A notification letter will also be sent to the accountholder once the account is closed
Cheque Clearing
When you deposit a cheque into your account, the bank which is the collecting bank will send it to specific clearing settlement centres (Maldives Monitory Authority) to be sorted and transfer money to the drawee bank for payment. The time taken for the money from the cheque to be cleared /credited into your account will depend on the number of days required to clear the cheque. The number of clearing days may be affected by public holidays which fall within the clearing period.
However, the time taken may vary from bank to bank depending on the time required to present the cheque for payment through clearing process.
Local and outstation cheques need to go through the clearing process and the time required for cheques to be cleared would depend on the location of the branches. Generally, domestic cheques would be cleared within 2-3 working days. The clearing period for outstation cheques may vary depending on the mode of transport and other logistics. In any circumstance, you are advised to check with the bank as to the actual date the funds will be available.
For Applicable Charges visit Schedule of Charges