January 1, 2025
By Idris Buba
Despite the directive and warning by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, that any bank found not dispensing cash via ATMS would be sanctioned, many Nigerians are at the mercy of Point of Sales, PoS, operators as most banks’ Automated Teller Machines, ATMs, across Lagos and other states metropolis across the country remain without cash.
Even in the yuletide season, there is no reprieve as most of the banks, before the holidays, turn their customers back for lack of cash, and in few cases where the customers are able to get cash, withdrawals were limited to N5,000 to N20,00.
The development, made many Nigerians frustrated as they prepared for the season’s celebrations.
As expected, the PoS operators, took advantage of the scarcity of cash in banks and ATMs and imposed exorbitant charges, which has persisted, on cash withdrawals to the detriment of citizens
In many parts of the country, a typical PoS transaction now attracts fees as high as N300 for a withdrawal of N5,000—a sharp contrast to the N50 or N100 that was hitherto the norm months ago.
While for larger amounts, the charges are negotiable, leaving customers with no choice but to pay the inflated rates depending on the location and the POS operator.
The situation has become particularly dire for many Nigerians, who rely on cash for daily transactions.
Although no official explanation has been given for the shortage, a bank officials spoke on the condition of anonymity, said CBN has not been releasing cash to banks like before and the amount of cash that customers are depositing has significantly reduced.
READ MORE; CBN New Directive For POS, Sets Daily Transactions At N100,000 Per Customer
However, stakeholders speculate that it could be linked to a combination of cash hoarding by individuals or a deliberate plan by the CBN to force many Nigerians to embrace digital payment in order to make more transactions traceable and taxable..
Which ever way, many believed that it might also be part of the plans of the CBN to limit cash in circulation, “Why has the CBN not penalized any bank for not dispensing cash as of now?”
Amidst the cash scarcity, fingers are being pointed at an alleged unholy alliance between PoS operators and banks as the cause of the scarcity, an allegation the Pos operators have debunked, saying there was no such alliance.
A PoS shops owner Mr. Ibe Nwanchukwu, lamented that even the operators have also been unable to withdraw cash from the banks in recent times and have also have to pay to get cash for the business.
According to him: “For some time now, we have been working with market women and shop owners, who receive cash daily from their sales, we collect cash from them and transfer the money to their account with a fee”.
“We also source cash from petrol station attendants and their station managers to ensure we have cash for our customers “.
“People are complaining that PoS operators are increasing their charges, we are also paying to get the cash.” He said.
Due to complaints by bank customers over scarcity of cash across counters and ATMs, in September 2024, the CBN Governor, Yemi Cardoso announced that the apex bank, would sanction banks failing to dispense cash through their ATMs, as part of efforts to ensure sufficient cash in circulation.
He had emphasized that all deposit money banks must ensure there is always enough cash available for withdrawals stating the apex bank has set up a monitoring system to ensure compliance, and any bank not adhering to this directive will face penalties.
Despite the persistent scarcity, there has not been any report of any bank sanctioned for non compliance, as the ATMs are still empty.
