The National Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has fined Fidelity Bank N555.8 million for violating customer data privacy laws. The penalty, announced by NDPC’s National Commissioner, Vincent Olatunji, during a workshop in Abuja, is the largest ever imposed by the commission.

Fidelity Bank was found to have breached both the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) of 2019 and the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023. The fine, representing 0.1 percent of the bank’s annual gross revenue for 2023, was increased due to the bank’s lack of cooperation during the investigation.

Olatunji highlighted the importance of data protection compliance and warned that penalties for non-compliance can range from N10 million to two percent of an organization’s gross earnings. He noted that the NDPC had been working with Fidelity Bank since April 2023 to resolve the issues, but the bank’s dismissive attitude led to the full penalty being enforced.

Fidelity Bank has 14 days to pay the fine.