The usage of Naira cards for international online and Point of Sale (PoS) transactions has been discontinued, according to banks. The banks also set restrictions on how much users of dollar cards can withdraw from offshore ATMs.
Banks are limiting card use as part of efforts to cut back on dollar expenditures abroad and conserve foreign currency for the economy. The monthly card spending cap for online purchases has also been reduced from $100 to $20.
Customers who wanted to do transactions in foreign currency were recommended to apply for dollar or sterling-denominated debit or credit cards by both Stanbic IBTC Bank and Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria.
Findings revealed that several banks had decreased the $300 suggested daily ATM withdrawal limit for foreign transactions to $100 due to their inability to source for dollars to fund the transactions. The banks are also turning down payment requests from customers paying business partners abroad with naira debit cards.