CBN lists different types of bank charges

Ten Nigerian banks witnessed a significant surge in electronic banking revenue owing to the rise in cashless transactions in Nigeria.

Data from financials submitted by the banks to the Nigerian exchange revealed that the ten banks collectively earned N235.87 billion in electronic banking income in 2022.

This represents a 8.59 percent surge from the N217.24 billion recorded in the previous year.

The banks surveyed include Access Bank Holdings Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, Wema Bank Plc, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, Guaranty Trust Holding Company and Subsidiary Companies, Jaiz Bank Plc, WEMA Bank Plc, Unity Bank Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, and Stanbic IBTC Bank.

Punch reports that UBA reported the highest earnings from customers' electronic transactions among the banks, while Jaiz Bank Plc had the lowest.

Out of all the banks, Stanbic Bank was the only one to report a decrease in earnings from electronic transactions.

Breakdown of the banks' earnings

Here is a breakdown of how much banks made from the surge in customers' cashless transactions in 2022

UBA: N78.95bn

Access Bank: N59.65bn

Zenith Bank: N45.74bn

GT Holdings: N23.20bn

Wema Bank: N6.14bn

WEMA Bank: N6.13bn

Union Bank: N7.97bn

Unity Bank: N3.96bn

Stanbic IBTC: N2.51bn

Stanbic IBTC Bank: N2.51bn

Jaiz Bank: N530.26m

Fidelity Bank: N855m

CBN approve bank charges

UBA, in its financials, described its Electronic banking income are money collected on transactions processed via electronic channels such as ATM, POS, and mobile banking as well as credit and debit card transactions.

Here is a breakdown of the Central Bank of Nigeria's approved charges to understand how the banks made their money.

Electronic Funds Transfer:

N50 for transactions above N50,000

N25 for transactions between N5,000 - N50,000

N10 for transactions below N5,000

Automatic Teller Machines (ATM): N35 charge for the third withdrawal within the same month from other banks' ATMs

Card Maintenance Fee for Naira Debit/Credit Cards:

N50 quarterly maintenance fee for Naira debit or credit cards linked to savings accounts. $10 quarterly maintenance fee for foreign currency-denominated debit/credit cards

Hardware Token Charge: subject to cost recovery with a maximum charge of N2,500 (reduced from N3,500)

Naira Debit/Credit Card Charges: N1,000 issuance, replacement, or renewal fee for regular or premium cards

Intra-Scheme Money Transfer:

Minimum charge of N50 for sending to an account holder, subject to 1% of transaction value or N300 (whichever is lower)

Minimum charge of N50 for sending to a non-account holder, subject to 1.5% of transaction value or N500 (whichever is lower)

Cashless Policy: 2% for individual cash deposits above N500,000

3% for individual cash withdrawals above N500,000

3% for corporate cash deposits above N3 million

5% for corporate cash withdrawals N3 million

Status Enquiry: N500 per request for confirmation letter, embassy letter, reference letter, letter of indebtedness/non-indebtedness, etc.

Short Message Service (SMS) Mandatory Alert: based on cost recovery (previously maximum charge of N4)

Bill Payment via e-Channels: maximum charge of N500 (previously 0.75% of the transaction value subject to a maximum of N1,200)

Special Request for Statement of a Bill of Account: N200