Access to Naira has continued to be a challenge for Nigerians in the last few weeks, even as the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance, and Financial Institutions are attributing the challenge to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s inability to meet the cash demands of commercial banks.
Microsecondnews’ investigation in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital revealed that the banks have pegged the maximum any customer could withdraw from the counter and the ATM machines to a maximum of N5000.
A few banks make an exception if the ATM user is a customer of the banks, in which case they can withdraw up to N10,000 a day.
At the Zenith Bank at Dugbe, one of the security men explained to our correspondent that this was a strategy to ensure that everyone got something because there was not enough to go around everyone wishing to withdraw cash.
Many POS operators also declined to transact withdrawal services but were only willing to accept deposits.
ASSBIFI President, Olusoji Oluwole, told the Punch the CBN was to blame as it had failed to meet the demands of the banks for cash.
“In terms of (the cash) scarcity, this is something that has not ended since the redesign of the naira,” Oluwole said.
“Banks have only two sources of cash: the CBN and retailers. The CBN has not met banks’ demands, and retailers often sell cash for profit, making it harder for banks to access funds,” he explained.
“But, of course, it is beginning to become more pronounced now that we’re heading towards the Christmas celebrations, where a lot of people are going to need money to carry out their shopping and other businesses.
“Banks are not in a position to force retailers to bring the cash to banks,” he added, describing how this dynamic exacerbates the scarcity of cash in Automated Teller Machines and across bank counters.
According to him, the banks collectively require at least N20m daily to operate, with ATMs needing approximately N8m each and N4m over the counters.
He advocated a shift towards less dependency on cash, emphasising that a cashless economy was cheaper, safer, and more efficient for the economy.
