The apex bank disclosed this in the framework titled, ‘eNaira Circular and Guidelines’ released.’

The news is coming after President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) launched the currency in Abuja.

The CBN said, “The charges for transactions that originate from the eNaira platform shall be free for the first 90 days commencing from October 25, 2021, and then revert to applicable charges as outlined in the Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial and Non-bank Financial Institutions.”

The apex bank noted that Electronic Funds Transfer below N5,000 is charged N10; N5,001 – N50,000 is charged N25 and for above N50,000, a N50 charge is associated.

The bank also said phone numbers without verified National Identification Number (Tier 0) will have a daily transaction limit of N20,000, while the maximum that the account can hold is N120,000.

For phone numbers with verified NIN or Tier 1, CBN said they have a daily transaction cap of N50,000 and a maximum balance of N300,000.

Tier Two accounts will have access to a daily transaction of N200,000, while N500,000 is the maximum balance that can be held.

The Tier 3 account holder can transact a maximum of N1m daily, while the Maximum balance it can hold is N5m.

However, the CBN noted that merchant accounts have access to unlimited transactions.

According to the Bank, merchants are duly accredited individuals and non-individual (corporates) authorized to conduct business in Nigeria.

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The CBN Director, Payment System Management, Mr. Musa Jimoh, said this during an interview on the ‘Business Morning’ programme on Channels Television.

Jimoh said, “Today, anywhere you present naira to pay, compulsorily it must be accepted because that is our fiat currency. So, the same way naira is accepted that you can’t reject it, is the same way e-naira must be accepted. Anywhere in this country where e-naira is presented, it must be accepted. So, merchants must accept e-naira as a means of payment.”

The liability of the e-naira money is directly on CBN which is similar to the cash you hold. The liability of the cash you hold today rests with the CBN. So, it gives Nigerians the opportunity to bank with CBN,” Jimoh said.

He added, “E-naira is a journey. We don’t expect that on October 1, all business merchants in Nigeria will accept it. We don’t even expect that come October 1, all Nigerians will have e-naira. It is a journey. It will continue to grow.
“Remember there was a time in this country when you had to practically beg business outlets, merchants and others to accept POS transactions. But we have come to a point where traders now beg for POS terminals.”

“Today the cost of producing the naira and coins is very high. It costs money to print naira in this country. Now, the minting of e-naira is electronic so it reduces cost,” Jimoh stated.

Punch