Barclays Bank of Kenya has frozen applications for safe deposit boxes following the discovery seizure of fake money and gold inside its Queensway branch in Nairobi on Tuesday, March 19.
Jeremy Awori, the banks’ Chief executive in a statement said the bank was also reviewing the existing safe boxes as “an extra precaution.”
“As an extra precaution, we have taken a decision not to take any new safe deposit boxes and are working with our clients to review the existing safe deposit boxes.”
READ: What You Need to Know About Safe Deposit Boxes
He further clarified that the fake 20 million U.S. dollars (Ksh.2.6 billion) intercepted at the Queensway branch had not infiltrated into the bank.
“We would like to reassure you that we have robust processes to ensure that all currency dispensed over our counters and ATMs is genuine and that items held in safe deposit boxes are separate from the bank deposits,” he said.
“We continue to cooperate and assist the investigating authorities including proactively reporting and handing over a second safe deposit box owned by the customer under investigation.”