As a step toward implementing the naira redesign strategy, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has released a new cash withdrawal policy that states withdrawals over N100,000 and N500,000 will now be subject to 5% and 10% fees, respectively.
The apex bank also said that, going forward, only denominations of N200 and lower will be accepted at ATMs.
The CBN’s director of banking supervision, Haruna Mustafa, sent a letter on Monday to all deposit money banks, other financial institutions, primary mortgage banks, and microfinance banks, according to information obtained by PulseNets.
A third-party check for more than N50,000 would not be accepted for payment, per the letter cited with the BSD/DIR/PUB/LAB/015/069 The daily cap for over-the-counter, OTC, and ATM withdrawals is N20,000.
The maximum cash withdrawal through the point of sale (PoS) terminal should be N20,000, it was further stated.
“The maximum cash withdrawal over the counter (OTC) by individuals and corporate organizations per week shall henceforth be N100,000 and N500,000, respectively.
“Withdrawals above these limits shall attract processing fees of 5% and 10%, respectively; third-party cheques above N50,000 shall not be eligible for payment over the counter, while extant limits of N10,000,000 on clearing cheques still subsist; the maximum cash withdrawal per week via Automated Teller Machine (ATM) shall be N100,000 subject to a maximum of N20,000 cash withdrawal per day; Only denominations of N200 and below shall be loaded into the ATMs; The maximum cash withdrawal via point of sale (PoS) terminal shall be N20,000 daily and in compelling circumstances, not exceeding once a month, where cash withdrawals above the prescribed limits are required for legitimate purposes, such cash withdrawals shall not exceed N5,000,000 and 10,000,000 for individuals and corporate organizations,” the letter stated.
The CBN announced its intention to revamp the 200, 500, and 1000 naira denominations on October 26. It stated that the new notes would begin to circulate on December 15, 2022, and that the existing naira notes would cease to be used as of January 31, 2023.
See memo below;
