NO BANK CHARGES FOR CASH DEPOSITS BELOW E30 000

mfanukhona@times.co.sz

MBABANE – A small and medium business is safe from bank charges if it deposits cash amounting to E30 000.
In fact, there are no bank charges for cash deposits beginning from zero to E30 000.

However, one per cent of cash deposits in excess of E30 000 shall be charged at maximum by the country’s financial institutions.
It effectively means they can charge less but not more than one per cent.

amended

According to the Regulations of Banking Fees and Charges (Amendment Notice 2019), which amended Section 5 of Legal Notice 62 of 2016, banks should not charge clients in personal accounts regardless of the product or type of account a client maintains with a bank.

Clients or customers are not supposed to pay charges for depositing money for school fees. However, the Central Bank has given financial institutions the liberty to negotiate with clients who hold corporate accounts.

Regarding SMEs, the gazetted Notice signed by Central Bank Governor Majozi Vincent Sithole states as follows: “the banking fees and charges in cash deposits shall be – (c) zero (0) up to thirty thousand Emalangeni (E30 000) per day and a maximum of one per cent (1%) of amount in excess for small and medium enterprises business accounts and (d) unprescribed and negotiable for corporate accounts.” 
In the Kingdom of Eswatini, an SME refers to a business whose turnover is below E50 000 (micro) and does not exceed E8 million (medium).

charged

Supposedly, a client who represents an SME deposits cash amounting to E300 000, he will be then charged one per cent of the money in excess of E30 000; meaning he will be ordered to pay at maximum one per cent of E300 000. That translates to E3 000.  Nonetheless, if he deposits E1 million, he could part with E10 000 in bank charges.

In a recent statement published on its website, the EswatiniBank, which is 100 per cent owned by government, did not effect charges on cash deposits in business accounts but it charged E35.40 on cheque deposits.

In cash deposits in personal accounts, there were also no charges imposed on clients by the government owned bank.
At FNB, cash deposits at ATM were free in line with its pricing guide for 2019/2020 which was effective on July 1, 2019.
Cash deposits for business and corporate accounts were also free at First National Bank (FNB).
The 2018 pricing guide for Standard Bank indicates cash deposits for business accounts were free. Personal accounts did not attract cash deposit charges at Standard Bank as well.

The Central Bank of Eswatini is responsible for formulating and implementing a sound monetary policy to achieve financial stability. It is the duty of the Central Bank to achieve and maintain price stability. This is in line with government’s aim of achieving sustainable growth. In terms of its monetary policy implementation framework, the bank uses instruments such as the discount rate, reserve and liquidity requirements, open market operations and moral suasion.
formulating
It also conducts research on monetary, financial and economic matters and uses this information in policy formulation. It must be said that the bank, together with government, is responsible for formulating and monitoring economic policies that are aimed at promoting economic growth, development, and ultimately improving the standard of living for emaSwati.
In June last year, the Eswatini Competition Commission (SCC) implored the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE) to ensure that banks did not charge steep fees that were not related to the cost of providing the services.
The recommendation followed an inquiry by the SCC, which revealed that local bank charges were relatively high in comparison with other Common Monetary Area (CMA) member countries.
A report released by the Commission cited specifically Namibia and Lesotho, where the non-interest income was approximately 10 and seven per cent, respectively.
These findings were in line with the findings of the recent Limited-Scope Comparative study on basic banking fees and service, which was conducted by the Central Bank of Eswatini.
The Commission noted it’s concerned that despite the introduction of the Central Bank of Eswatini Legal Notice No. 62 of 2016; bank charges were still high when compared to the other CMA member States such as Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa.
monetary
Zithulele Gina, Head of Strategy and Communication at Central Bank of Eswatini, could not be reached for comment despite messages and calls made to his mobile phone on Friday and yesterday.
Certain officers at the country’s banks said the matter could be best discussed at length by the Central Bank, which manages the monetary policy of the country.   

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: