CBN, Western Union launch foreign remittance

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #fff1e0; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> <a class="addthis_button_facebook_like" fb:like:layout="button_count" href="" style="color: #cd1713; text-decoration: none;"></a><a class="addthis_button_tweet" href="" style="color: #cd1713; text-decoration: none;"></a><a class="addthis_button_pinterest_pinit" href="" pi:pinit:layout="horizontal" style="color: #cd1713; position: relative; text-decoration: none;"></a><a class="addthis_counter addthis_pill_style" href="" style="color: #cd1713; text-decoration: none;"></a></div> <div id="comments" style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #fff1e0; color: #333333; display: block; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> </div> <br /> <div class="post-59404 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-main-story entry" id="post-59404" style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #fff1e0; background-image: url(http://businessdayonline.com/wp-content/themes/transcript/styles/default/bgr_shadow.png); background-position: 50% 0%; background-repeat: repeat no-repeat; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221); color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px; orphans: auto; padding: 15px 9px 7px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> <h1 class="entry_title" style="color: #555555; display: block; font-family: georgia, verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 26px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: -1px; line-height: 26px; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 5px;"> <span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px;">The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in collaboration with Western Union Company and First Bank Plc, on Friday, launched out-bound remittance service to enable Nigerians to transfer money around the world.</span></h1> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> At the ceremony in Abuja, CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, said that the project was in line with the bank’s policy to transform payment landscape in Nigeria.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> Emefiele said that the initiative was targeted at remittances by individuals to dependants, including children, leaving abroad and for other person-to-person needs.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He said that the system would also simplify money transfer process in Nigeria.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “Western Union Company is well known as international electronic payment transfer service provider with a wide range of products and global coverage.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “Since the commencement of the inward money transfer service in 1995, which was pioneered by this same company, the payment landscape in Nigeria has significantly transformed,’’ he said.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> The CBN boss said that in-bound money transfer services had been in operation in Nigeria, and were dominated by Western Union, Royale Finance and Moneygram.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “Today, out-bound money services is being launched to provide an alternative channel of foreign exchange transfer to serve the needs of small foreign exchange end users .</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “Simultaneously, it reduces the foreign exchange sourced from official foreign exchange window in Nigeria and to a large extent, helps to conserve our foreign exchange,’’ he said.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He explained that under the initiative, a prospective customer, who wished to use the service, would only pay Naira equivalent to the money transfer operators for the foreign currency that would be paid to the specified beneficiary abroad.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> According to him, this will end the idea of going to the Bureau de Change or banks to buy foreign currency before transferring money abroad.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “If you have need to make payment to your children, brothers and sisters living abroad that need small financial support, all you need to do is to take your cash to any of the 5,000 Western Union outlets in Nigeria.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “We are working very hard to ensure that the number of outlets increases further from 5,000.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “We have also agreed with Western Union about the need for them to work with Bureau de Change (BDC) operators that are well structured,” he said.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> Emefiele said that apex bank was also working hard to make the BDC business robust for operators in the sector.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He said that the out-bound transfer service would only be conducted by international monetary service operators, adding that banks and BDCs that met the new CBN requirements would serve as agents for money transfer service.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He stated that bank accounts were not required to transfer funds and that transactions point would be within the reach of customers.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “We will allow cash, but going forward, we will discuss with operators of mobile telephones so that those on the mobile payment platform can transfer money from their accounts via western union to anybody abroad.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> “These are some of the efforts we are making because we are embracing cashless transactions,’’ he said.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> Emefiele, however, disclosed that CBN had put measures in place to check foreign currency being taken out of the country, saying that the step would help to manage the nation’s foreign reserve.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He said that guidelines on the measure will soon be released.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He said that the apex bank had been working with relevant agencies to look at reasons for movement of cash out of the country.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He urged stakeholders to use all the channels available to transfer money and avoid carrying of foreign currency out of the country.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> Emefiele explained that CBN had increased the allowable limit for credit and debit cards from 40,000 dollars to 450,000 dollars per annum.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> He assured that the CBN would continue to provide effective leadership in the payment system transformation in line with the aspirations of the Federal Government.</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> Source: Business Day Online</div> <div style="margin: 0px 0px 10px;"> <br /></div> <div class="clear"> </div> </div> </div>

CBN, Western Union launch foreign remittance

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in collaboration with Western Union Company and First Bank Plc, on Friday, launched out-bound rem...

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