The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday directed all banks to charge customers N600 for every N20,000 withdrawal from Automated Teller Machines (ATM) to reflect “rising costs.”
Per a CBN circular titled ‘Review of Automated Teller Machine Transaction Fees,’ referenced FPR/DIR/GEN/CIR/001/002 and seen by Techpression, all financial institutions are to charge ATM users from other banks N600 for every N20,000 withdrawal effective March 1, 2025.
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The apex bank said the ATM charges were revised to match “rising costs and the need to improve efficiency of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) services in the banking industry.”
“Off-site ATMs: A charge of 100 plus a surcharge of not more than N500 per N20,000 withdrawal,” stated the CBN circular. “The surcharge, which is an income of the ATM deployer/acquirer, shall be disclosed at the point of withdrawal to the consumer,” the circular dated February 10 stated.
On-site ATMs, on the other hand, will incur a charge of N100.
The outgoing policy mandated ATM users to pay N100 charge after three withdrawals from ATM of other banks.
The new N600 charge comes in the wake of a telecom tariff hike that has driven up the costs of calls, text and data.
Although the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) approved a 50 percent hike, MTN subscribers bitterly complained on social media of a 200 percent hike, posting screenshots of a 15GB data plan that previously cost N2000, now selling for N6000.
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Activists and rights group have accused the President Bola Tinubu administration of levying fees on struggling Nigerians without a corresponding plan to alleviate economic hardship in the country.
“In response to rising costs and the need to improve efficiency of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) services in the banking industry, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reviewed the ATM transaction fees prescribed in Section 10.7 of the extant CBN Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial and Non-Bank Financial Institutions, 2020,” the CBN said in the circular.
“This review is expected to accelerate the deployment of ATMs and ensure that appropriate charges are applied by financial institutions to consumers of the service. Accordingly, banks and other financial institutions are advised to apply the following fees with effect from March 1, 2025.”