Banks Flout CBN Order, Limits ATM Withdrawals To N10,000

Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are flouting the Central Bank of Nigeria’s order on withdrawal limit ahead of the February 10 deadline for use of the old naira notes.

The apex bank had earlier directed DMBs also known as commercial banks to pay customers maximum daily payout limits of N20,000 at the Automated Teller Machine (ATM), but many have limited payment to N10,000.

THE WHISTLER visited banks including Ecobank, Keystone, Fidelity, UBA, Access, and Zenith in the Karu, Central Business District (CBD), and Wuse areas of the FCT to ascertain the reason for the long queues at the ATMs stands.

This is following CBN’s directives that banks commence the payment of N20,000 of the redesigned naira notes over the counter to further reduce the queues and frustration of Nigerians at the ATMs.

Our correspondent had observed that some ATMs were not adequately loaded with money, and could only dispense cash for a short period leaving many stranded in the long queue.

Customers who arrived before noon had tally numbers up to 500 at an ATM stand.

For instance, at the Keystone and Fidelity bank branches located in the Central Business District, the maximum limit for withdrawal is N10,000. Similarly, at Ecobank along the Wuse market area, the maximum withdrawal is also N10,000.

Speaking to THE WHISTLER, a middle age trader in her early 50s, expressed her frustration after standing for hours, only to be allowed to withdraw N10,000 which is far below the required amount to do her business.

“I came all the way from Kuje to the central area just to withdraw. This is my bank, and the ATM is just paying N10,000 after I stood for hours,” she lamented after withdrawing successfully, at the Fidelity bank, located in the CBD area of the FCT.

The situation further left many dissatisfied as any attempt by some customers to withdraw the second time were thwarted by security personnel at the ATMs.

A security guard who spoke to our correspondent at Ecobank in the Wuse area of the city said the ATM was programmed to dispense only N10,000 to enable more people have access to money.

“We are paying N10,000 maximum so the money can go around. The machine is already programmed like that. This is why we are here, to make sure people don’t try more than once,” he said.

Recall that the CBN had extended the deadline for the withdrawal of old notes to February 10 following the difficulty of Nigerians accessing both the old and new naira notes.

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