CBN Cashless Policy Hits Abuja, Rivers,Kano,Abia Anambra

Residents of Abuja, Kano and the four other states where the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently included in the cashless policy, that wish to withdraw or lodge cash above the prescribed limits will have to pay the associated penal fees from today.

The other states are Rivers, Ogun, Abia and Anambra.

The central bank had deferred the charges when the policy was extended to the states in July, in order to allow bank customers adjust to the initiative.

The cashless policy was introduced in Lagos in January last year with the aim of reducing the dominance of cash as a means of payment in the economy. It specifies charges for individuals and corporate organisations that want to withdraw or lodge cash above prescribed thresholds, just as it encourages the use of electronic payment channels.

Under the policy, the CBN pegged the cumulative cash withdrawal or deposit limit for individual accounts at N500,000 per day and N3 million per day for corporate accounts.

However, just like in Lagos, from today, while individual account holders will be charged two per cent when they exceed the prescribed limit for deposits, corporate account holders that also wish to lodge cash above the limit will be charged three per cent.

On the other hand, just as cash withdrawals above the limit for individual accounts above the limit attracts a three per cent charge; corporate account holders will be charged five per cent.

The Deputy Governor, Operations, CBN, Mr. Tunde Lemo, had said in an interview that: “People should think more about how to conduct their lives without paying those charges. Nothing is changing; it is not as if we are saying there won’t be cash in those areas, no! The choice is yours. If you still want to carry heavy amount of cash, you can, but bear in mind that the associated cost of carrying heavy amount of cash will be borne by you