The Central  Bank of
Nigeria, (CBN) has explained that the rationale behind the introduction of charges on extended use of other banks’ Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) saying it was meant to ensure continued functioning of the machines  across the nation.
A release by CBN, issued by its director, corporate communications said cash withdrawal at the ATMs of a customer’s bank remain free, the customer should pay N65.00 when he or she uses the machine of another.
The release explained that the earlier introduced N100 transaction fee was never abolished but rather transferred   to customer’s bank to pay in order to encourage the use of ATMs nationwide.
Having sufficiently raised customers’ awareness, the first three remote-onus’ transactions in a month are free for the card holder but paid for by the issuing bank. The N65 charge only applies when a customer withdraws cash from another bank’s ATM other than that of his or her bank. The N65 starts to apply from the fourth transactions at another bank’s ATM in a month”, the statement said, adding that the charge was not intended to discourage financial inclusion or raise any anti-customer policy.
It however lamented that some customers were in the habit of abusing the ATMs through countless number of daily withdrawals.
Meanwhile, Abubakar Suleiman, Sterling Bank’s Executive Director, Financial and Strategy, said that the use of one bank’s ATM is totally free of charge contrary to the misinformation widely peddled.
He noted that the reinstatement of cost recovery for the use of other banks ATM is intended to limit the cost incurred by the banks and does not constitute profit.
Suleiman stressed that the last thing the country needed is a rollbank of the financial inclusion campaign which has resulted in a noticeable uptick in customer enrollment by banks and has created access to financial services for more than one million Nigerians in just over a year.