Commercial banks in Umuahia, the Abia State capital and their counterparts in Aba, the commercial hub of the State, have further reduced their customers’ cash withdrawal limits.
Reports say that most commercial banks as of Wednesday, were dispensing N20,000 daily limit to customers using their Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), while they pay the same amount to customers over the counter.
Customers of other commercial banks were permitted daily withdrawals limits of only N10,000 or N5,000.
Reports further said the situation improved on Thursday, as most banks paid N50,000 across the counter to their customers, while their ATMs still dispensed daily withdrawals of N20,000 for bank customers while customers of other banks were limited to N10,000 withdrawals in two tranches.
One of the commercial banks in Abia State Polytechnic Aba de-selected other options leaving their ATM users with the N5000 option alone; for both customers and other ATM users.
Reports quoting a bank staffer said he decided to start paying their customers N50,000 because they received more cash from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) office in Umuahia, the State capital.
According to the source, their withdrawal limit is determined by the amount of cash the banks receive from the CBN.
The situation has forved operators of Point Of Sale (POS) outlets to literally buy money from traders in various markets, who now prefer to keep their money in their shops rather than taking it to the bank.
A trader who gave his name simply as Chukwuemeka said that their reason for keeping cash in their shops is to avoid the limited amount of money that banks give them.
The situation is so bad that residents now part with as much as N6,000 in charges, to get N20,000 cash from POS operators.
- Media Report