We’re ready for Xmas rush, say bankers

By Ann Zulu

ALL banks have sufficient funds to deal with the demand associated with the festive season, Bankers Association of Zambia chief executive officer Leonard Mwanza has said.

Bankers Association of Zambia chief executive officer Leonard Mwanza

And Mr Mwanza has advised people not to overspend during the festive season but save for things that were critical to their lives.

There is anxiety among bank users that the banks might run out of cash during the festive season, following the high demand for money during this period.

A check at some Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) in the Central Business District by this reporter found long queues, as people jostled to withdraw money in preparation for the holidays.

One of the bank users Lewis Mwewa told the Daily Nation that he was withdrawing money in advance because the banks usually run out of cash during the festive season.

“Last year, I had challenges in accessing my money during the festive season. I had to wait for two days to get my money which was very inconveniencing on my part because I wanted to use the money for my holiday. So this time around I have decided to withdraw the money in advance,” he said.

But Mr Mwanza has urged depositors not to panic as there would be no cash flow problems during the festive season.

He said the banks were fully prepared for the increase in volumes and transactions that came with the holidays.

“The money we have is enough to cater for the festive season and there should be no fear at all. We know that there will be traffic at the banks during this period because people want to spend a little bit, but that shouldn’t be the basis for alarm that things are bad.

“The banks are fully prepared to handle the pressure that will come in as we go towards holidays. It is normal that during this period people tend to withdraw more, but there is no linkage that banks are expected to run out of cash. Those are just unfounded rumours. Liquidity on the market has improved, so we don’t expect any challenges,” he said.

Mr Mwanza also urged people to avoid withdrawing a lot of money and overspending just for the festive season, saying that there was life beyond this period.

He said there was need for people to plan and spend reasonably to avoid frustrations of not having money at the beginning of the year.

“This is the time that people should be serving money and keeping it safe. It’s time that we thought about more important things than just spending for festive season. We need people to serve and keep resources for things that are critical to their lives.

‘‘This season comes and goes, people must spend reasonably and avoid carrying too much cash; this is also a dangerous period, thieves are also active,” Mr. Mwanza said.