NAIRA SHORTAGE: FIRST BANK INFORMS CLIENTS THAT ITS BRANCHES ARE OPEN WHEN IT’S SAFE TO DO SO.

Following the currency crunch issue that is roiling the nation, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, an old-generation bank in Nigeria, has declared that it will only operate its branches where it is safe to do so.

Since the Central Bank of Nigeria started the process of removing the N1,000, N500, and N200 old notes from circulation, banks have been under pressure.

Remember that the deadline for the aforementioned obsolete notes was set by the apex bank for this coming Friday, February 10.

As clients wait in line at ATMs for long periods of time without being able to withdraw money, cash shortages have affected the majority of banks, sparking protests in several regions of the nation.

First Bank responded by warning that due to the nation’s increasing security concerns, it might temporarily close its doors to customers in a press release issued on Thursday.

“We are aware that these are difficult times, but our commitment to helping you does not change. We will continue to operate normally and will have significantly more capacity on all of our electronic platforms.

“However, as we also take the safety and wellbeing of our personnel seriously, we might need to temporarily close our doors if we notice skirmishes at particular spots.

“We think that we are all in this together, and we’re here to offer solutions. Unfortunately, people who target bank branches just make it more difficult for us to contribute to overcoming the problem we all confront, according to the statement.