The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a circular extending the maximum limit of N150, 000 on third party cheque withdrawals nationwide with effect from June 1, 2013. This implies that third party cheques above N150, 000 cannot be cashed over the counter and can only be received through the clearing house or deposited through in-house transfers.
“In recognition of its role in the development of an efficient payments and settlement, CBN undertook some major initiatives to modernize the system. One of such initiatives was that 3rd party cheques above N150,000 shall not be eligible for encashment over the counter. It has been observed that the policy has succeeded immensely in Lagos area and has also contributed to the reduction of fraud on cheques and aided the National financial inclusion strategy,” the CBN in a statement said.
The policy has been effective only in Lagos State since last year, following the commencement of the pilot phase of the cashless policy in the state. This limit on cash-based transactions in banks aims at reducing (not eliminating) the amount of physical cash (coins and notes) circulating in the economy, and encouraging more electronic-based transactions for payments of goods and services.
