ICICI customers asked to prove identity or lose a/cs

Dubai, Jan 22: ICICI Bank has asked its online trading account holders here to provide documents proving they are indeed the holders of their accounts, or risk losing their money.

NRI investors are puzzled by the letter from the bank and its stock-broking arm asking them to re-submit many documents the bank claims it lost during floods in India.

With a January 31 deadline, many worried NRIs have approached the representative office seeking clarification because their money is stuck in online accounts, Emirates Today reported.

The letter said the documentation had been damaged by floods in the storage areas caused by heavy rains.

A customer said the bank is responsible for losing the documents, and its decision would be hitting a lot of them as many are on leave or renewing their visas by sponsors, who generally keep their passports.

An ICICI call centre agent in Dubai said documents are required to renew the accounts as per the current regulatory requirements in India.

It is conducting special document resubmission sessions in Sharjah and Dubai, the bank said.

UNI