Cash scarcity resurfaces in Calabar as banks impose ₦5000 withdrawal limit
By Jennifer S. Kuwanta
Cash scarcity experienced about ten months ago has resurfaced in Calabar, the capital of Cross River state and is beginning to spread to other parts of the country, as some banks have pegged withdrawals over the counter at N5000.
The Guardian reports that almost all Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) are not dispensing cash, only a few are dispensing N5,000 or N10,000 only.
Further findings show that only two banks in the Calabar metropolis are paying up to N60000 but only to customers who bank with them.
Most Point of Sale (POS) agents have started charging N200 to N300 for withdrawals of N5000 and N500 to N600 for withdrawals of N10000. Some of the agents who spoke with The Guardian in Calabar lamented that they spend up to N3000 for transportation looking for banks and ATMs that are paying.
They said the increase in the price of charges is to cover the expenses incurred while sourcing for cash at different banks and ATMs.
They further lamented that most of the banks stopped loading cash in their ATMs, noting that as agents, they can only get limited cash from the ones they bank with.
A POS agent along the busy Effio-Ette junction, simply known as Chris, said, “What do you expect us to do, when you can’t even get up to N200,000 from four banks in a day, you spend a lot of transport going around town looking for which of the banks are paying.
“I was at Ecobank, no cash, First Bank for over a week now has stopped paying from the ATM, only FCMB can only pay 10k inside the bank (at the counter) if you don’t like to pay N200 for N5000, and N400 for N10000, please go, the cash will not spoil.”
Also narrating his ordeal, Ene-Ita said, he closed down his POS business because he could not access cash from his banks and ATMs.
“I closed down business since last week, in fact, I asked my staff to go and rest till the all thing return to normal. it started like joke three weeks ago, we thought it was just going to pass as soon as possible, little did I know that I will be facing the same thing I faced last year, I have promised myself that I won’t buy money, that is why I closed down the business until things return to normal.”
A resident who spoke with The Guardian in one of the banks in Calabar, Mrs. Eme Okon, said, “can you imagine, I filled a teller to withdraw N30000, the lady at the counter told me, ‘Madam, I don’t have this kind of money to give to you, I have only N5000 which is our limit’ and when I asked her why, she couldn’t give me an answer. What happened early this year is repeating itself again. Emefiele is imprison as we speak because he became the scapegoat, who are they going to arrest and imprison for this time around.” She wondered.
The cash scarcity is coming ten months after a similar situation when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) redesigned the naira that led to panic withdrawal across the country.
The terrible experience led to untold hardship on Nigerians who were denied access to their money.