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ATM fee foe sues central bank

A rights activist is petitioning Nigeria's federal court to rescind an order that reversed a 2012 ban on foreign fees.

October 16, 2014

In August, Nigeria's central bank announced that as of Sept. 1, all cardholders would be subject to ATM foreign fees of 65 naira (39 cents). Now a rights activist is petitioning the country's high court to disallow the fee.

According to the African publication Ventures, plaintiff Timi Frank, said in a court filing that "the decision by the CBN governor to reintroduce charges of cash withdrawal from ATM was retrogressive and a negation of the cashless policy currently being propagated by the CBN."

Two years ago, the central bank mandated an end to foreign fees, which were 100 naira at that time. The ban supported Nigeria's cashless policy, which aims to get citizens in the cash-driven nation to keep their money in the bank rather than a cupboard at home.

Foreign fees were reinstated at the 65 naira rate following a the installation of a new governor at the central bank earlier this year. Frank seeks an order setting aside the bank's new directive. Ventures said that no date has been set for the case.