The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revised its money withdrawal guidelines, discontinuing the particular authorisation beforehand allowing people to withdraw N5 million and corporates N10 million as soon as month-to-month, efficient January 2026.
In a round launched on Tuesday, December 2, 2025, and signed by Dr. Rita I. Sike, Director of the Monetary Coverage & Regulation Division, the apex bank defined that earlier money insurance policies had been launched through the years in response to evolving circumstances.
Nevertheless, with time, the necessity has arisen to streamline these provisions to mirror present-day realities.
The brand new set of cash-related insurance policies is designed to scale back the price of money administration, strengthen safety, and curb cash laundering dangers related to the economic system’s heavy reliance on bodily foreign money.
“These insurance policies, issued through the years in response to evolving circumstances in money administration, sought to scale back money utilization and encourage accelerated adoption of different cost choices, significantly digital cost channels. With the effluxion of time, the necessity has arisen to streamline the provisions of those insurance policies to mirror present-day realities,” the CBN acknowledged.
New withdrawal and deposit guidelines
Efficient January 1, 2026, people will probably be allowed to withdraw as much as N500,000 weekly throughout all channels, whereas company entities will probably be restricted to N5 million.
- Withdrawals above these thresholds will entice extra withdrawal charges of three % for people and 5 % for corporates, with the costs shared between the CBN and the monetary establishments.
- Each day withdrawals from Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) will probably be capped at N100,000 per customer, topic to a most of N500,000 weekly. These transactions will depend towards the cumulative weekly withdrawal restrict.
- The particular authorisation beforehand allowing people to withdraw N5 million and corporates N10 million as soon as month-to-month has been discontinued.
The CBN additionally confirmed that every one foreign money denominations might now be loaded in ATMs, whereas the over-the-counter encashment restrict for third-party cheques stays at N100,000. Such withdrawals may even kind a part of the weekly withdrawal restrict.
Compliance and reporting obligations
Deposit Cash Banks are required to submit month-to-month stories on money withdrawals above the desired limits, in addition to on money deposits, to the related supervisory departments.
They need to additionally create separate accounts to warehouse processing costs collected on extra withdrawals.
Exemptions and superseding provisions
Income-generating accounts of federal, state, and native governments, together with accounts of microfinance banks and first mortgage banks with business and non-interest banks, are exempted from the brand new withdrawal limits and extra withdrawal charges.
Nevertheless, exemptions beforehand granted to embassies, diplomatic missions, and aid-donor companies have been withdrawn.
The CBN clarified that the round is with out prejudice to the provisions of sure earlier directives however supersedes others, as detailed in its appendices.
What it is best to know
In October, the CBN issued a directive requiring all monetary establishments to submit detailed month-to-month stories on the actions of their Level-of-Sale (POS) brokers.
- In a round signed by Musa Jimoh, Director of the CBN’s Funds System Coverage Division, the apex bank acknowledged that the stories should embody complete information on the character, worth, and quantity of transactions performed by brokers.
- The round additionally acknowledged that POS brokers are restricted to a most of N1.2 million per day, whereas particular person clients are restricted to N100,000 in every day transactions.
CBN mentioned these limits are meant to curb misuse, improve monetary integrity, and defend shoppers throughout the agent banking framework.