Cash withdrawal limit: No cause for worry, CBN assures Nigerians

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has allayed the fears of Nigerians over its new cash withdrawal limit policy, assuring that all the concerns are being addressed.

The apex bank, under the new withdrawal policy, had restricted the maximum cash withdrawal over the counter (OTC) by individuals and corporate organisations per week to N100,000 and N500,000 respectively.

The Deputy Governor of CBN on Financial System Stability, Mrs Aishah Ahmad, said the cashless policy was introduced in 2012 and that its implementation had brought transformation to the banking and payment system.

She spoke yesterday when she appeared before the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions for her reappointment screening. 

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President Muhammadu Buhari had, earlier in the week, asked the Senate to confirm the reappointment of Ahmad and Edward Lametek Adamu as Deputy CBN Governors in charge of the Financial System Stability and Corporate Services Directorate respectively.

Ahmad assured that no section of the country would be left out as required facilities for the full implementation of the cashless policy in terms of financial access point system, mobile money, e-naira were available across the 774 local government governments in the country. 

She said: “I’m happy for the opportunity given to make presentations on planned N100,000 withdrawal limit for individuals and N500,000 for corporate bodies per week, beginning from January 9, 2023 in line with cashless policy introduced in 2012.

“All fears and worries being expressed by Nigerians on the planned limited cash withdrawal policy are seriously being taken care of as nobody or section of Nigerians, will be left out.

“In the past, banking transactions in Nigeria was limited to bank branches alone as the only means , which has now expanded into multiple electronic platforms  as well as geometrical increase in the number of agents from 88,000 to 1.4million.”

She, however, said the CBN was ready to accommodate opinions that would not make the policy strenuous to any category of Nigerians during implementation.

After her presentation, the committee chaired by Senator Uba Sani (APC Kaduna), gave the two nominees a “take-a-bow-and-go” treatment as moved by the Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu and seconded by Senator Danjuma Goje.

Sani said with Ahmad’s presentation on the planned limited cash withdrawal, required information on the merits of the policy had been given and would “be communicated to the Senate in plenary through our report.

“The two deputy governors, having earlier been screened before serving their first tenure, need not to again as unanimously agreed by members of the committee. They should therefore take a bow and go”.