Why We Restricted Withdrawals From Domiciliary Accounts-CBN
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said the restriction on withdrawal of foreign currency deposits from domiciliary accounts was due to cases of illicit transactions that have been recorded over time through such accounts.
The apex bank had on Sunday cleared rumours that the regulator prohibited acceptance of foreign currency cash deposits by Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in the country.
According to the bank only transfers into domiciliary accounts can be transferred from such accounts while cash deposits into such accounts can only be withdrawn in cash.
This means that If you made a transfer of $20k to your domiciliary account and paid in cash of $5k, you can only transfer $20k which is the exact amount you put into the account via transfer while the $5k can only be withdrawn as cash.
However, a Twitter user on Monday called out the apex bank wanting to know the objective of such restrictions and if it was in line with global industry standards.
In response, the CBN said: “it is meant to stop some people who are paying cash from illicit transactions into domiciliary accounts and wiring such money away thereby laundering it.”