Nigerian banks create dollar debit cards for PTA, BTA payments

Nigerian deposit money banks have created debit cards for accessing foreign exchange for legitimate needs by the end-users.

Such legitimate needs include Business Travel Allowance (BTA), Personal Travel Allowance (PTA), school fees and medicals.

This is in line with the directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to all Deposit Money Banks on ensuring the fulfilment of legitimate FX requests for PTA/BTA.

One of the leading banks, Access Bank Plc has created an easier process to access FX via the Access Travel Debit Card.

According to the bank, effective October 18, 2021, all payments of legitimate and approved PTA will now be credited to the Access Travel Debit Card for use outside Nigeria.

“On request, you can also get cashback in Naira equivalent using the prevailing approved rate,” the bank said in a statement to customers.

The benefits of the Access Travel Debit Card include instant issuance for PTA/BTA requests, easy access to international transactions via POS, ATM and WEB.

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The card is valid for 3 years and can be used for current and subsequent PTA/BTA requests within its validity.

All unutilised funds remain in the card and can be used for international transactions or subsequent trips.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the bankers’ committee had on August 12, 2021, announced plans to digitise dollar sales for legitimate needs through creating an App.

This was the outcome of the 357th meeting of the banker’s committee meeting held virtually on that day.

Wigwe, the group managing director/CEO, Access Bank, said on that day that banks have been criticised for not being able to handle PTA, BTA transactions.

“This is just to let people know that we will continue to the due diligence required with respect to KYC compliance. Foreign exchange is a very scarce resource if we find people trying to come up with tickets that have expired or that they are going to cancel or passports that are not legitimate in any way or people coming to buy more than they are supposed to buy using all the banks, we will report them to the law enforcement agency for them to deal with these people,” he said.

Hope Moses-Ashike

Hope Moses-Ashike is an Associate Editor, Banking and Finance, with more than a decade of experience reporting on Nigeria’s financial system and broader economy. She closely tracks market movements, monetary policy decisions, company disclosures, regulatory actions, economic indicators, and global developments, and interprets what they mean for businesses, investors, policymakers, and households. Her reporting helps readers understand complex issues such as inflation trends, foreign exchange market dynamics, interest rate decisions, bank performance, and investment risks. She also covers major international events and periodically travels to Washington, D.C., to report on the World Bank/IMF Spring and Annual Meetings. Her dedication to financial journalism has earned her multiple recognitions and invitations to high-level professional development programmes. She is an alumna of the International Visitors Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and holds an Advanced Financial Journalism Certificate from the Press Association Training in London, UK. Her other notable achievements include completing the Lagos Business School CMC Programme, the Bloomberg Media Africa Initiative Programme, and a Master Class in Journalism at Rhodes University in South Africa.