This week, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) released a memo that contains, among other things, the maximum amount of cash transactions Nigerian individuals and corporate organisations could make in day and in a week. From the memo, the maximum cash transition for individuals is N100,000 per week. KINGSLEY ALUMONA sampled the opinions of Nigerian on this matter. Their views:
Paul Ayobamidele
It would not work because many factors are against it. Effective technology, cyber security risks, education of citizens, excessive taxation, crazy bank charges, lack of coordination between fiscal and monetary policies, CBN fixation on using demand side-side economics to fix the economy without taking cognizance of the supply side.
Samson Olowolayemo
On my Facebook post a month ago, I tagged CBN asking them for the same policy. So, to curb further hoarding of money by the masses, which has greater economic effect, this policy would reduce theft because most transactions would be traceable. This is a good step. But, I would implore them to remove charges on mobile transfers. By doing this, the masses would not have negative feelings towards the policy. They should place the charges on the transactions at the end of the month. However, this must not affect the poor masses.
Innos Freedom
It would have been a good policy, but it is going to negatively affect millions of people. They should look at the advantages as well as the disadvantages. The online banking system is going to be difficult for many businesses across the country. This is because many Nigerians are illiterates or semi-literates; and the literate ones are not well equipped for successful online transactions.
In addition, the banking network system is too poor to solely depend on when transferring huge funds. Sometimes, you transfer money to another person and it would take hours before it would be received; sometimes, it bounces back to the sender. This would create headache on a long run.
Also, it would render millions of people − who are self-employed through the POS business − unemployed. The CBN placed withdrawal limit for individuals to N20,000 per day. How would POS operators source for cash to run their business? If these people close down their businesses, which job do they tend to provide for them?
These are some of the reasons I think the policy is not going to be favourable to many Nigerians.
Dauda Kungu
The government needs to put some things in place and make some adjustments before embarking on the policy. The government should ensure there is adequate awareness and enlightenment at the grassroots. People should know the importance of cashless economy and what is expected of them. They should also make sure that the process money transfer by commercial banks, is comprehensive, effective and efficient.
The network service providers and the commercial banks should also improve on their services so that transaction failure would be drastically reduced.
The banks should also ensure the security of people’s money. The amount limited for POS withdrawals should be at least N100,000; and in the banks, it should be not less than N200,000.
Abiodun Fakemi
I hope some politicians would not have special privileges on the money they need to buy votes next year. It is a good policy as long as it would help the economy to grow. Naira is gradually appreciating against the pound since yesterday when I checked.
Babs Peter
It would have been the best idea. What about epileptic internet by the service providers and our banks? To handle failed transactions takes minimum of five to nine working days. With this policy, what becomes of daily earners whose four-men have to pay as much as 20 to 30 workers? Our service providers need to upgrade their technology before this policy could be applauded.
Komolafe Cornelius
Such a policy would not curb corruption or prevent money from going out of circulation. Instead, it would inflict hardship on the lower- and middle-class citizens. CBN should employ a direct approach to handle those who are taking money out of circulation, not this indirect approach such people could bypass.
Not everyone who withdraws money is taking it out of circulation. Some are using it to grow the economy, while others are using it to drain it. CBN can put in place measures that could stop or check those who are draining the economy.
Franklin Oluwatoye
Everything this policy needs is already in place. Unfortunately, we have not been making good use of it and that has been contributing to slow growth of our monetary and economic system. This policy would help to check corruption, fraudulent acts, embezzlement, and direct sale of naira at parties. It is always a thing of worry when new naira notes are sold with interests. I do not know how a poor man that does not spend up to N20,000 in a week should be worried about this policy.
Igwe Chukwudi
There is a problem with this policy. Monetary deposit banks should do more work on educating and encouraging their customers on how to use their phones to transact business. But the problem with this policy is lack of network to allow transactions to be completed. Most times, transactions hang and later revise to the senders. Some other times, the receiver and the bank delay in notifying the two parties that are involved in the transaction. This is one of the reasons this cashless policy would have a setback. Unless the network providers and the banks would be up-and-doing in providing their customers with fast internet services, people would have no other choice than to follow the moving train.
Orvesen Hange
This policy, to me, is on track because the CBN is encouraging e-banking, which would generate revenue for the government and also check the excessive cash in circulation. It would also help to check the hoarding of money by politicians and criminals.
Oluwole Martins
It is just a matter of time and you would notice that the policy brings nothing but hardships in business transactions. We were told the other time that when we link our NIN with our phone numbers, kidnapping would end. But kidnappers are still much around in every corner of the country despite the NIN and phone number linkage. If you want to improve Nigeria’s economy, engage in more practical approaches rather than this CBN’s gibberish policy.
Ogbonna Ugwoke
This is one of the best policies of the APC government. It would promote digital inclusion, reduce the cost and the risks associated with transporting cash, frustrate vote-buying and kidnapping, and reduce corruption as every transaction would be traceable. It would come with initial pains, but when we get used to it, we would thank Buhari and Emefiele for the bold step.
Pascal Igwilo
It is not a good move at all. We have our women who go to ‘bush’ markets to buy goods. Secondly, some of our mothers in the village cannot do online transfer of money. How does the CBN want them to handle their businesses?
Terkuma Shima
If the Payment Service Banks (PSBs) could penetrate the most remote locations of the unbanked populace, then it is fine. But if that is not the case, then the policy is doomed already. This is because where I live, one has to withdraw from the POS for almost all their financial transactions, and not many people have bank accounts. But every household owns at least a mobile phone. As such, telecom operators should utilise their customer/network reach effectively and aggressively. This could be done by registering their customers onboard their various PSBs at market places and outlets.
Ojuyemi Zaltanera
Looking deep into these policies, I believe it is an avenue to generate more income for the government. If the CBN is serious about cashless policy, they would not include the five per cent charges for those who want to exceed the withdrawal limits.
Muhammed Thani
Inasmuch as it would not devalue the naira more and would help to moderate the flow of money in circulation, it is okay. It is an ideal policy. But one challenge I noticed is that the N200 note could be mistaken for the N10 note; N500 note for N20 note; and N1000 note for N50 note due to the resemblance in colour. This should also be timely addressed because nowadays the sight of some people may not enable them to detect the difference.
David Alexander
It is a good policy, though I am afraid of the fact that it would increase the rate of joblessness amongst Nigerians as banks may embark on mass retrenchment of workers. Those who are involved in POS business may be jobless, as many individuals may purchase POSs for their own use. The ease of doing business may reduce. However, it is a welcome development. It would curb crime such as armed robbery, kidnapping, armed banditry, and so on, as all monetary transactions would pass through a process which could be monitored by the banks.
Muhammed-Bello Buhari
It is a welcome development. I see a future for Fintech. It would benefit the telecom companies the most. However, my concern is for phone services and internet access in remote areas. We know that Nigerians in some remote areas have to travel or climb hills in order to access phone services or broadband networks. The disparity in access level in homes remains a concern. Many rural areas that have internet access do not have banks. How can these people, who are in the majority, cope?
Abdulrahman Yahaya
The government should be considerate whenever it is making its policies. This policy was made without much thought about how it would make life difficult for millions of Nigerian traders. What would N20,000 per day suffice? One might say that people in rural areas now use mobile banking. But in all honesty, even we in the supposed urban areas could not boast of the reliability of our banking apps. How many times have you heard of or experienced money transferred not reaching the recipient or reversed back to the sender? What is the percentage of Nigerians who own bank accounts?
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All these were not considered before making this policy. If they did, they would have started a process towards cashless system without a withdrawal limit of N20,000 per day. Policymakers should learn how to gradually make their policies efficient. They should not be stampeding Nigerians. N100,000 per day would have been reasonable.
Olaniyan Abdurrahman
We, the poor, are the ones to suffer most of the effects of the changes in Nigeria. However, to achieve modernisation in some sectors, there would be some crisis. I want to ascertain that the act of limiting cash withdrawal is a good thing because most advanced and advancing countries have resolved to use e-money transactions.
Otakponmwen Markson
It is certainly a temporary measure to allow more money to be printed. If they make it a long-term practice, many people would refuse to keep their money in the bank, as they would not be able get it when urgently needed. If you need food stuff and drinks for your party, how would you be able to pay the onions and tomatoes sellers with bank cheques or electronic transfer.
Attah Ita
It is not completely a bad idea, as the objective is targeted at making our economy strong. The effect on petty trader (market people) and SMEs would be outrageous because everything good has a bad side. In the long run, the priority might be misplaced and merchants could subject us to buying cash with interest as is done with the dollar. It would be tough, but I am sure it is the best for the economy.
Baniyaminu Harbeholar
The policy, to me, is an outstanding decision taken by the CBN. It would train Nigerians on management skills to survive difficult situations. Also, it would reduce vote-buying in the coming elections, as well as make the naira to be more valuable. I would urge our leaders to make this effective for all.
Blessing Nwagbara
It is a good policy to help curb money laundering and fraud. However, it is not in the interest of small businesses. How could a market woman go to Onitsha to purchase goods when all she could assess is N20,000 per day? Besides, what if there is an emergency? This policy should be adjusted in favour of the common man.
Omobola Olagbenro
This policy would only work when our economy is restructured − when some important things are first put in place − because our country is still lagging behind in many necessary areas. Thus, this would pose serious problems. It would adversely affect businesses and people. The government should get it right before implementing the policy. I think our leaders should start from the scratch first to make things convenient for the masses.
Dazzie Dannie
They make policies without critical thinking. We just cannot rely on a cashless policy without effectiveness. With the rate of bank network failures − imagine a failed transaction treated for about nine-working days. It is really frustrating. How does one cope if one’s business requires a lot of procurements? The government can do better by investing more in the IT sector. They do not need restriction policies to discourage the people from cash transactions.
Sunday Ojebuyi
To be honest, it is a good policy formulated to promote digital currency as well as to reduce too much cash in circulation. It would discourage kidnapping, because every cash withdrawal would be traceable. However, I believed it is high time the bankers, VIPs and politicians stuck to the rules of the policy because they may fail to adhere to it.
