Suspend cash withdrawal limits immediately - Reps tell CBN

December 8, 2022 7:57 PM

The House also summoned Emefiele to come and explain the policy to the parliament.

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele

The House of Representatives has asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to immediately suspend the implementation of its latest policy, which sets limits to cash withdrawals at deposit money banks and other financial institutions in the country.

This decision was based on a motion of urgent public importance moved by a member of the House, Aliyu Magaji, at the plenary presided over by House Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Thursday, December 8, 2022.

The House also summoned the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, to appear before lawmakers on Thursday, December 15, 2022, to explain the withdrawal policy and other series of policies rolled out by the apex bank recently.

Several lawmakers have raised concerns about the potentially serious adverse effects the policy may have on businesses and Nigerians who operate outside the banking system.

However, the House Minority Leader, Ndudi Elumelu, is of the opinion that the policy would check crimes as funds would now be tracked through the banking system.

According to Elumelu, even though the timing might be wrong, the country stands to benefit more from the implementation of the policy.

Recall that the new CBN policy had set the total over-the-counter withdrawals per week for individuals at N100,000 and N500,000 for corporate organisations, stating that withdrawals above the limits will attract a 5 per cent processing fee for individuals and a 10 per cent fee for organisations.

The policy also pegs the third-party cheque payment over the counter at N50,000 while the maximum Automated Teller Machine (ATM) and Point of Sales (PoS) daily withdrawal are set at N20,000 and the total weekly withdrawal at N100,000.

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