FG bans withdrawal from Govt accounts from March 1

The Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has banned cash withdrawals from all bank accounts belonging to the federal, states, and local governments, effective March 1, 2023.

The Director and Chief Executive Officer of the NFIU, Modibbo Tukur, announced this in Abuja on Thursday.

He said any government official that withdraws cash from public accounts risks investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, and the Nigeria Police Force in collaboration with the NFIU, depending on the gravity of the situation.

All government transactions will be carried out on the basis of electronic transfer if the amount exceeds the approved daily withdrawals by the Central Bank of Nigeria under the new monetary policy.

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Modibbo said that under the guidelines, only the President could give a waiver for any cash above the approved daily threshold to be withdrawn for any urgent or emergency reasons.

Modibbo said, “With the implementation of this guideline, Nigeria has been taken into a non-cash economy with effect from March 1, 2023”.

He disclosed that despite the introduction of the cash withdrawal limits in the country, state governments withdrew a total of N701 billion cash above the N225 billion stated by the federal government while local governments withdrew N156 billion from 2015 to date.