Nkechi Okutu, a petty trader in Ibadan, Oyo State, has accused both Sterling Bank and Kuda of holding on to her N39,000, an amount she was relying on to boost her trade.

The petty trader told FIJ that she made a N39,000 transfer from her Sterling Bank account to her Kuda Bank account on April 15, hoping to purchase goods needed for her business with it.

“It was for my business and I needed it urgently at that time,” she said.

“The money left my Sterling bank account but never impacted my Kuda account.”

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Okutu said she visited a Sterling bank branch in Ibadan to lodge a complaint on the transaction the following day.

“Sterling Bank printed a transaction session ID for me after I told them what happened. The slip that was given to me showed they had credited Kuda Bank but till we speak, my Kuda account is yet to reflect the amount,” said Okutu.

“I sent the session ID that Sterling Bank gave me to Kuda Bank, but they told me they are yet to receive any money from them.

“This made me visit Sterling Bank a second time where they still insisted that my money is now with Kuda. Now, I don’t even know who to believe anymore.”

Okutu said that she eventually made the Sterling Bank staff ,who had initially printed the session ID for her, to speak to a Kuda Bank staff member on the phone about the transaction.

READ ALSO: Kuda Withholds Customer’s N42,000 — Because Money Was Withdrawn From ‘An Account With Insufficient Funds’

“In my presence, the Sterling Bank staff advised her Kuda Bank counterpart to log my complaint on a portal with the session ID at their end in order to confirm where the money went to,” Okutu.

“The Kuda Bank staff in her response, said she should be given 24 hrs to do treat the request. However, it has been more than two weeks since she made the promise and I still don’t know where my money is. I have also called both banks many times but I am yet to get a positive response.

“They need to tell me where my money is.”

Okutu also told FIJ that her business has suffered a setback because of her inability to purchase new goods with the money.

FIJ made several phone calls to both Sterling and Kuda Banks for comments but they were not answered. Text messages sent to them have also not been responded to at press time.