ATMs out of cash as money supply disrupted

Nasir Hossain, a resident of the capital's Dhanmondi area, had to urgently buy daily necessities as he had not gone to the market for the past few days in the wake of the deadly protests that forced Sheikh Hasina to resign from her post as prime minister.

He usually does not keep a lot of cash with him owing to the convenience of ATM booths.

But despite travelling all around his neighbourhood, Hossain could not withdraw money from any machine yesterday as they had all run out of cash.

"Overall, I visited almost 10 booths but failed to withdraw a single penny. Either they had run out of money or restricted the use of ATM cards issued by other banks," he said.

Speaking to The Daily Star, multiple customers of different banks shared similar experiences.

Bankers said most ATMs were out of cash and even many branches were running low on cash as money supply had been disrupted due to inadequate security over the last several days.

Security concerns gripped the country since August 6 as police observed a work abstention, citing fears for their own safety amid reports of deadly attacks on policemen the previous night.

Bangladesh has been in turmoil since July, with over 535 fatalities in clashes involving protesting students, police and ruling party members.

Reports of violence and arson also flared on Monday night after Sheikh Hasina fled the country.

Apart from the limited presence of army personnel, the streets and important establishments in the capital were left without security.

Mohammad Ali, managing director and chief executive officer of Pubali Bank, said although there is no cash crisis in the banking sector, they have been unable to deliver money to booths and branches as security companies that transport money have halted services.

"The security agencies that carry our cash told us that they will not provide services in the current situation," he said.

Hence, banks are struggling to supply money, especially to remote branches and booths, he added.

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"One of our advantages is that 95 percent of our ATM booths are connected to branches. So, if necessary, we can supply money to the booths from the branches. But we can't send money to the booths which are not connected to branches," Ali said.

At the same time, banks operated on a limited scale across the country, closing outlets and booths in areas where the risk is greater.

Similar to the past couple of days, the presence of customers was very thin as no one went to banks unless they were facing an emergency.

In the Motijheel area, most branches operated through pocket gates while most booths were shuttered and the doors of several banks closed, hampering overall activities, including financial transactions.

Nahid Hasan, a private job holder, said he went to Motijheel from Farmgate yesterday to collect a bank statement from Standard Chartered Bangladesh as its branches in Karwan Bazar and Dhanmondi were closed.

"I had to enter the bank through the fire exit as the main door was shuttered," he said.

Mashrur Arefin, managing director and CEO of City Bank, said they have closed 19 out of 174 branches across the country due to security reasons.

As a pre-emptive measure, branch managers have been given the authority to operate as per their own security assessment, he said.

As a result, branch managers will be able to shut their operations without consent from the headquarters if they sense security concerns, he added.

Pubali Bank's Ali further said that the security provided by the banks with their own armed guards is insufficient given the current situation.

As a result, there is a risk of untoward incidents occurring at any time, he added.

He said money supply can be ensured if security is provided by the army, Border Guard Bangladesh or Rapid Action Battalion.