BW Unveils BNCH to Transform Cash Management in Nigeria

•New initiative to cut banks’ cash handling costs, risks 

•Customers to gain instant value deposits at convenient retail locations 

•Strategic rollout begins in Lagos, Abuja, Kano before nationwide expansion

Oluchi Chibuzor

Bankers Warehouse Limited (BW) has launched Bank Neutral Cash Hub (BNCH), a service designed to streamline cash deposits and withdrawals for customers while cutting costs for banks.

The initiative aims to enhance efficiency, mitigate risks in cash handling, and expand financial inclusion in high-density retail locations across Nigeria.

BNCH service is a cash management solution designed to reduce the need for customers to visit multiple banks’ branches for cash deposit (and withdrawal) transactions, thereby saving banks the cost of opening and operating new branches or multiple branches in close geographic proximity to high-density retail locations.

According to a report made available to THISDAY yesterday, the service was designed to collect cash from various retailers and individual customers at BNCH locations strategically placed in high density retail locations like markets, malls and shopping centers.

It stated that through the new solution, customers would receive instant value in their participating bank account, handling, transportation and warehousing of cash at our secure vault locations.

Each hub would serve as a secure lodgment channel for all customers, including agency banking operatives who may be desirous to transact volumes for their customers and/or bank their own cash at the end of a business day.

“Only basic depositor KYC will be required at the point of transaction; no customer pre-registration will be required by the participating bank or customers,” it explained.

It goal which aligns with that of the Central Bank of Nigeria, is to “Improve operational efficiency in the cash management value chain in Nigeria.”

However, its key objectives include to, “reduce risks and cost borne by banks, merchants and huge cash handlers in the course of cash management activities, leveraging on shared services to enhance cash management efficiency & deepen financial inclusion.”

The BW stressed that it is the logical choice to deploy BNCH, pointing out that the solution is expected to lead to cash management cost reduction as it leverages on shared services to provide more affordable and efficient currency management systems.

Additionally, it will bring about risk reduction for banks and their customers as it leads to location proximity, door-to-door collection and payment services would be built around convenience and risk mitigation.

 Furthermore, it will lead to a reduction in the number of unprofitable branches for banks, and ease of access for multiple bank customers and non-bank customers; leverage on the vast industry expertise of BW spanning almost two decades; infrastructure availability – independent cash centers and vaults, with armoured trucks, note counting and sorting machines, IT Infrastructure and Software, etc – all deployment ready.

In addition, it creates expansion opportunities for more BNCH locations, supported by Regional Cash Centers/Vaults  cash centers in other huge cash generating locations and it is available to serve all tiers of customers within their locality

Highlighting the BNCH locations, BW stated: “Our first BNCH is located at Mile 12. This is deliberate as the market. Representatives took the initiative and wanted us to solve their problem. Mile 12 has become a model for us and demonstrates that such a focus could enable us drive inclusive growth which we are targeting.

 “We have selected well-identified wholesale and retail markets with a large concentration of interstate activities and presence of an underbanked value chain because of their level of cash intensity and density. The identified locations are across major states in the country, but we will start from Lagos, Abuja, and Kano, where BW currently has cash centers, expanding quickly into other cash-dense locations like Port Harcourt, Onitsha, Ibadan, Kaduna, Niger, and others.”

It listed the features of the BNCH to include its technology ecosystem and infrastructure as each BNCH location features: physical armed security, ballistics-protected doors, strong room, a redundant power supply (Generator/Solar/Inverter/PHCN), separate teller points for individual and bulk transactions, currency counting and sorting machines, innovative customised software for end-to-end transaction processing with customer module, CCTV cameras for surveillance, access control, data redundancy (On-site & Offsite backups), network security, endpoint security – for the protection of each PC, real time settlement capability and ATM Gallery space available for rent

“Our Team is made up of seasoned cash handlers and Tellers, familiar with the varying aspects of the cash ecosystem from tellering, cash counting/sorting, vaulting, and bookkeeping. Each team will be supervised by a branch manager who will be responsible for all aspects of the BNCH operations on site,” it added.