The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced revised fees for Automated Teller Machine (ATM) withdrawals. These changes take effect on March 1st. The CBN indicated that rising operational costs was reason for the review.
John Onojah, Acting Director of the CBN’s Financial Policy & Regulation Department, explained in a circular on Wednesday that the new charges will “address increasing operational costs and enhance the efficiency of banking services.”
Free withdrawals will continue for customers using their own bank’s ATMs. These are known as “on-us transactions.” However, using ATMs located at bank branches (on-site ATMs) will now cost ₦100 per ₦20,000 withdrawn.
Withdrawing cash from another bank’s ATM (a “not-on-us transaction“) will incur two charges. First, there will be a ₦100 fee. Second, a surcharge of up to ₦500 per ₦20,000 will be applied. The CBN clarified that “the surcharge is the income of the ATM deployer/acquirer and must be disclosed to consumers at the point of withdrawal.”
Adjusting to Economic Realities
This is the first change in ATM fees since 2019. At that time, the CBN reduced the fee from ₦65 to ₦35. The CBN stated that the updated fees are “in line with Section 10.7 of the CBN Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial and Non-Bank Financial Institutions (2020).”
Clarifying further the rationale behind the fee increase, CBN stated: “In response to rising costs and the need to improve the efficiency of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) services in the banking industry, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reviewed the ATM transaction fees…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.”
The CBN also addressed international withdrawals. Banks and financial institutions can now charge a “cost-recovery charge equivalent to the exact amount charged by the international acquirer” for international withdrawals using debit or credit cards.
Additionally, the CBN stated that the three free monthly withdrawals for Remote-On-Us (other bank’s customers/Not-On-Us consumers) will no longer apply under Section 10.6.2 of the Guide.
The apex bank directs all financial institutions to comply with the new guidelines by the March 1st implementation date.
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