The current crisis in foreign exchange has taken toll on Diamond Bank.
Indication of this became apparent as the bank just announced a new restriction on the Naira debit card.
Accordingly, its customers can no longer use the cards in the United Arab Emirates, China and all African countries apart from Nigeria.
Diamond Bank, however, asked its customers to use the dollar-denominated debit card which will not have any limitations.
But that also is impossible due to the red flag on funding of dollar cards by cash lodgements.
It would be recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) banned the cash deposits in foreign currencies in banks.
Diamond Bank message reads: “Due to the current FX market realities, please be informed that your Naira Debit Card has been restricted for usage in UAE, China and African countries.
“We encourage you to make use of the Diamond USD Dollar or Diamond GBP debit card to transact in any of the above mentioned countries and enjoy the following benefits: unlimited annual spend from your USD and GBP accounts; increased daily spend limit across all channels (WEB, POS, ATM); no conversion fee on transactions done in Card’s denominated currency, and Chip and PIN protection.”
Although all banks have placed various restrictions on the use of Naira-denominated debit cards, including limiting daily withdrawals and POS transactions, Diamond Bank is the first to openly restrict the use of its card in UAE and China.
