In a cash emergency, individuals are only permitted to withdraw up to N100,000 from ATMs each week. In other words, Nigerians are only allowed to withdraw a maximum of N100,000 each week and N20,000 per day.
This information was included in a circular that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), situated in Abuja, sent out to all deposit money banks and other financial institutions on Tuesday.
"The maximum cash withdrawal each week via Automated Teller Machine (ATM) shall be N100,000 subject to a limit of N20,000 cash withdrawal per day; only denominations of N200 and less shall be placed into the ATMs, and the maximum cash withdrawal via point-of-sale (PoS) terminal shall be N20,000 daily," it says in the regulation.
The rest of the circular, released by the CBN's Director of Banking Supervision Haruna B. Mustafa, states that the weekly maximum for cash withdrawals made over the counter (OTC) by private people and corporate organisations will be N100,000 and N500,000, respectively.
For withdrawals surpassing specific criteria, the CBN announced increased processing costs of 5% and 10%.
The CBN limits weekly cash withdrawals to N100,000 for private persons and N500,000 for enterprises.
Additionally, "Existing limits of N10,000,000 on clearing cheques still subsist" and "Third-party cheques beyond N50,000 will not be eligible for payment over the counter beginning next year."
When cash withdrawals over the permitted limits are necessary for lawful purposes, the CBN has instructed DMBs and OFIs that they "must not exceed N5,000,000.00 and 10,000,000.00 for individuals and corporate organisations, respectively, in compelling circumstances, not exceeding once per month."
However, such withdrawals will still be subject to the "mentioned processing costs of 5% and 10% as the case may be."
The Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) reasons for making this decision is not unconnected to its objectives of lowering inflation and the money supply in the system and promoting alternative banking channels to improve financial inclusion for the Nigerian populace.
During the most recent meeting of the bank's Monetary Policy Committee, Godwin Emefiele, the governor, suggested this move in response to a query from the media on withdrawal limits (MPC).