First Bank of Nigeria has reduced operation hours at most of  its branches nationwide as the country’s economic condition continues to worsen.

In a statement made available on its official website on Sunday, the bank announced that the new development will take from Monday April 11.

“We have revised our banking hours across all our locations. The revised opening and closing hours will be effective from Monday, 11 April 2022,” the bank said.

The bank further disclosed that while some of its  branches will maintain the status quo, other branches will function between the hours of 8:00 am to 3:00 p.m., 8:00 am to 2:00 p.m., 8:00 am to 1:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m accordingly.

Despite not stating the reason for the action, it is believed the bank took the decision to cushion the effect of the increasing cost of diesel with which it powers many of its branches.

The development also comes in the wake of the incessant national grid collapse that has over time left the country in darkness forcing organisations to heavily rely on diesel for their operations.

In March, Peoples Gazette reported that the pump price of diesel hit a record high of N800 per litre, with the new price showing a significant increase from the N225 per litre sold in January 2021.

Mostly used by large and medium sized businesses to run their daily operations, the price of diesel, which is largely unregulated, has surged by over 113% in the last 14 months.

Recall that Guaranty Trust Bank in March  reduced its operation closing hour from 5:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. over the incessant increase in pump price of diesel.