GTBank raises Naira card international spending limit to $40,000

Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO), through its flagship banking subsidiary, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), has doubled the international spending limit on its Naira-denominated debit cards to $40,000 per quarter, from the previous ceiling of $20,000.

The upward review, communicated to retail and corporate customers in a notice, allows cardholders to make higher-value cross-border payments directly from Naira-funded accounts.

The expanded limit covers international airline bookings, hotel accommodation, payments through overseas merchant point-of-sale (POS) terminals and foreign tuition fees, among other eligible transactions.

The development signals improving foreign exchange (FX) liquidity in the banking system and growing confidence among banks in their capacity to meet customers’ legitimate international payment needs.

The review also comes against the backdrop of increased FX inflows from foreign portfolio investments, non-oil export proceeds and other autonomous sources of foreign currency.

Unlike previous periods when international card spending limits were heavily influenced by broad-based regulatory restrictions, banks now have greater discretion to determine card limits based on their individual foreign currency liquidity positions, risk management frameworks and operational capacity.

The increase by GTBank is therefore viewed as part of a broader normalisation of access to FX for retail and corporate customers, following significant reforms in Nigeria’s FX market.

Higher card limits could also reduce pressure on the parallel market by enabling customers to meet legitimate overseas obligations through formal banking channels.

Travellers, students, businesses paying for international services and subscribers to foreign-based digital platforms could have less need to…