Barclays Zimbabwe clarifies bank charges issues, says it was caused by a system delay

On Monday the RBZ issued a directive to all banks operating in Zimbabwe to change their bank charges effective 12 December 2016.

The new bank charges for cash withdrawals at an ATM or over the counter are now set at 1% and 1.25% respectively. The directive between the RBZ and banks was communicated via a Circular to Banking Institutions No. 05-2016/BSD.

By Tuesday, some banks had not yet implemented the new bank changes with many clients taking to social media to vent their frustrations over what they felt was being illegally overcharged.

This then led to one Barclays Zimbabwe client posting a mini bank statement which showed they were charged $10,05 for a cash withdrawal of $111, way off the newly stipulated bank charges. 

We reached out to Barclays Zimbabwe who clarified that they are obliged to follow regulations set out by the RBZ and that:

With all charging modifications, Barclays was completing operational changes on our system resulting in a slight delay. We can confirm that this has since been implemented on the system and customers will be charged according to the revised cash withdrawal limits- Managing Director Mr Guvamatanga

So, Barclays Zimbabwe has since rectified the issue and are now fully compliant with the regulator, RBZ. Those affected by the delay in operational changes will have to take it up with the Barclays and the regulator RBZ.