KEY POINTS
- Bank customers across Nigeria are expressing deep frustration over escalating transaction charges, claiming that “unauthorised” and “excessive” debits are discouraging them from keeping money in formal accounts.
- Common grievances include high monthly SMS alert fees (some reporting nearly N1,000/month), Electronic Money Transfer Levies (EMTL), VAT, and Stamp Duties that erode small deposits.
- The CBN had announced the elimination of five major charges effective January 1, 2026—including the N50 EMTL and certain internal transfer fees—yet many customers report that the “burden” remains high due to other rising costs.
- A shift in behavior is emerging, with some residents reverting to “olden days” methods of keeping cash in home safes to avoid the persistent “assault” of digital banking fees.
MAIN STORY
Bank customers in Abuja and across Nigeria have intensified their complaints over a barrage of transaction charges, warning that the current fee structures are negating the country’s financial inclusion drive.
In separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), depositors described the situation as “alarming,” with some reporting daily debits that make maintaining a bank account nearly “unbearable.”
Mrs. Helen Agodo, a customer with First HoldCo Plc, revealed that her daily debit alerts sometimes total up to N800 in a single day. This sentiment was echoed by Miss Cheta Ugochukwu of GTCo Plc, who highlighted that her monthly SMS alert charges alone reached N996.
“I wanted to disable my bank SMS when the amount was increased and rely only on my app receipt,” she said, adding that the lack of transparency in how these fees are calculated is unfair given the current state of the economy.
The outcry comes despite a major policy shift by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which took effect on January 1, 2026. The reform was intended to scrap five major charges, including the N50 Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) on certain transactions, stamp duties on salary/investments, and internal transfer fees. However, while the CBN has resolved over 9,700 complaints in the last year and facilitated billions in refunds, the surge in overall complaints (up 143% year-on-year) suggests that the “visible” costs of banking are still outstripping consumer confidence.
Under the new 2026 pricing guidelines, while cash deposits are now completely free and unlimited, new weekly withdrawal limits of N500,000 for individuals and N5 million for corporates have been introduced. Excess withdrawals now trigger a flat 3% to 5% processing fee, shared between the CBN and the banks.
For many small business owners like Usman Idris of Fidelity Bank, these layers of charges mean that deposited money often returns a lower value upon withdrawal, leading to “ugly experiences” where they find themselves stranded.
Industry observers and groups like the Bank Customers Association of Nigeria (BCAN) are being urged to engage the regulator further. While the CBN’s “Cash-less Nigeria” policy aims to reduce the cost of physical cash management, experts warn that if the digital alternative becomes too expensive through “hidden” fees, the public may continue to retreat from the formal banking sector entirely.
WHAT’S NEXT
- Regulatory Audit: The CBN is expected to intensify its oversight of “Account Management” and “Excess Charges” to ensure banks are strictly adhering to the January 2026 fee elimination directive.
- Shift to App-Only: More customers are likely to disable SMS alerts in favor of mobile app notifications to save on the roughly N12,000 annual cost of text-based alerts.
- Cash-Management Re-adjustment: Businesses are expected to restructure their cash flow to stay within the new N5 million weekly withdrawal limit to avoid the 5% excess processing fee.
WHAT’S BEING SAID
- “I do not blame some people who decide not to put their monies in a bank… debits were up to N800 just for a day,” said Mrs. Helen Agodo.
- “My bank charged me about N996 for SMS alert in one month, this to me is too much,” noted Miss Cheta Ugochukwu.
- “The aim according to CBN is to reduce financial burdens and increase financial inclusion,” noted NAN records regarding the January 1st reforms.
BOTTOM LINE
The Bottom Line is that while the CBN is pulling levers to make banking “cheaper” on paper by scrapping major levies, the proliferation of smaller, recurring fees is winning the war of perception. For the 2026 financial inclusion goals to succeed, the regulator must bridge the gap between policy announcements and the actual “alert experience” of the average Nigerian depositor.
