The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced an extension of the suspension on processing fees for cash deposits exceeding N500,000 for individuals and N3,000,000 for corporates. This suspension will remain in effect until March 31, 2025.
- The CBN’s latest decision allows individuals and corporate entities to deposit cash exceeding N500,000 and N3,000,000, respectively, without incurring additional charges until March 31, 2025.
- Banks across Nigeria have begun notifying customers about this extended grace period.
- This move is part of the CBN’s efforts to alleviate the burden of transaction costs on large cash deposits, continuing from earlier announcements made this year.
- The suspension of fees on large cash deposits was first implemented in May 2024, halting the charges outlined in the “Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial Institutions and Non-Bank Financial Institutions,” which was originally issued in December 2019.
The processing fees previously imposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) were set at 2 percent for individual accounts and 3 percent for corporate accounts on cash deposits exceeding N500,000 and N3,000,000, respectively. However, after a brief reinstatement of these charges on May 1, 2024, confusion arose among bank customers who encountered fees on their large deposits.
In response to this confusion, the CBN promptly issued a new circular on May 6, 2024, signed by Adetona Adedeji, Director of Banking Supervision. This circular confirmed the suspension of these fees until September 30, 2024. The timeline for this suspension has now been extended to March 31, 2025, allowing individuals and corporate entities to continue depositing cash above the specified thresholds without incurring additional charges.
