Some small business operators and residents in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on Sunday decried the scarcity of naira notes for various transactions.

Over the past few days, bank customers experienced difficulty trying to get cash from banks’ Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and Point of Sale (PoS) agents.

This has resulted in a hike in withdrawal charges by some of the PoS operators.

Mary Isaac, a PoS operator in Mabushi, complained that she spent more than five hours in the bank on Friday trying to get cash.

“For every transaction, now the charge is from N200 and above, which will go higher this December.

” This is not our fault but the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which has not put more cash in circulation,” she said.

Paul Uzor, a businessman who came to withdraw cash from a PoS agent, said he was charged  N500 to withdraw N10,000.

Mr Uzor said the extra charge was unfair to the masses, considering the harsh economic situation.

He called on the CBN to prevail on all deposit money banks (DMBs) to make enough cash available in the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and the banking halls.

Isah Abba, a trader, said the scarcity of cash was particularly hurting small business owners who rely on money for their daily business transactions.

“We can not run our business like this. Both businesses and customers do not have enough cash, and when we go to the POS, they also do not have cash,” he said.

He urged the CBN to address the acute scarcity of cash before the festive season sets in.

Meanwhile, the CBN has threatened to impose fines on banks over scarcity of cash at the ATMs.

The CBN governor, Yemi Cardoso, said this at the annual bankers’ dinner organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria in Lagos at the weekend.

Mr Cardoso said the apex bank would be conducting spot checks across the DMBs and would impose sanctions on underperforming banks.

He urged customers to report any difficulties accessing cash directly to the CBN for prompt action.

“We also recognise the ongoing challenges with cash availability at ATMs, which disproportionately affect ordinary Nigerians. To address this, we are conducting spot checks across the DMBs, and we impose penalties on the underperforming institutions.

“Effective December 1, 2024, customers are encouraged to report anytime difficulties withdrawing cash from bank branches or ATMs directly to the CBN through designated phone numbers and email addresses for their respective states,” he said.

He said guidelines would be circulated widely to raise public awareness and called for full regulatory compliance by all stakeholders, including mobile money operators and PoS agents.

The CBN governor emphasised that financial institutions engaging in malpractices or sabotage would face penalties.

“The CBN will continue to maintain a robust cash offering to meet the country’s needs, particularly during high demand periods such as the festive season and year-end,” Mr Cardoso said. 

(NAN)