Following a fall in forex inflow due to the crash in oil prices, Zenith Bank, one of Nigeria’s largest financial service provider, has restricted the monthly international withdrawal limit on naira cards at $1,000 per month. READ ALSO: Polaris Bank Reiterates Support For SMEs’ Growth
Keeping customers abreast of the situation, the bank, in a mail to its depositors, said its daily limits for withdrawals outside Nigeria had been set at $300.
The mail read: “Please be informed that the monthly international spend limit for your Zenith Bank Naira card has been reviewed to $1,000.
“Your card can be used for ATM withdrawals outside Nigeria ($300 daily limit), web and point of sale payment.”
In a similar occurrence where Nigeria’s economy slipped into a recession in 2016, the bank released a similar notice to its customer which read: “Please be informed that the monthly international spend limit for your Zenith Bank Naira card has been reviewed to $1,000.
“Your card can be used for ATM withdrawals outside Nigeria ($300 daily limit), web and point of sale (POS) payment.”
With economic experts predicting that the Nigerian economy may suffer another blow in the near future, there are indications that other banks may tow the same line as Zenith Bank.
Recall that crude oil prices recorded a sharp decline after a meeting between the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, and its allies resulted in Russia declining to join additional cuts proposed by OPEC.
Furthermore, Saudi Arabia, announced its decision to increase daily output and offer discounts to its customers.
This development has caused panic in the Nigerian forex market with the naira trading at N400 to the dollar.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, while reacting to the situation, said unscrupulous market speculators were responsible for the panic.
Emefiele said that the demand for the dollar was unexplained as manufacturing firms in China and Europe are closed as a result of the outbreak of coronavirus.
