Due to the fall in Crude Oil Prices as Crude Oil is the main source of the country’s foreign exchange earnings, Banks as from Monday will slash the amount Customers can spend Abroad using their Debit cards.
However, the two commercial banks which have confirmed the new development include:
Stanbic IBTC Bank, the local unit of South Africa’s Standard Bank, said it will slash the spending limit for foreign card transactions to $500 per month from today and will limit cash withdrawals to $100.
Another is Zenith Bank said it will cut the monthly spending limit abroad by more than half to $200 and also suspend temporarily the use of Debit cards Abroad for cash withdrawals.
Zenith Bank in a notice advised customers to request for prepaid dollar cards as the review is in today’s economic realities.
Also other banks that have lowered their withdrawal limits for customers abroad are Ecobank and Fidelity Bank.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ban on international travels, Nigeria is yet to resume forex sales.
The CBN is struggling to preserve dollar reserves that are down 19 per cent from a year ago. Last week, it reduced the currency on the official market trigerring the naira to weaken on the black and over-the-counter spot markets.
