Customers of uniCredit Savings and Loans make panic withdrawals
Some aggrieved customers of the Kantamanto branch of uniCredit Savings and Loans company have, for the past two weeks, thronged the premises of the Kantamanto branch of the company to withdraw their savings following claims that the financial institution is folding up.
The customers, who are mostly traders at Kantamanto, demanded that they should be allowed to withdraw their hard earned savings over the years.
Some reports have it that the situation of the company is as a result of the collapse of uniBank.
Observations
When the Daily Graphic visited the premises of the company, a number of customers were desperately waiting for their turn to withdraw their money.
There was anguish, desperation and disappointment on the faces of some of the customers when they were told that they would only be allowed to withdraw GH¢300 daily from their savings.
Although some of them agreed to take the money, others felt that it was tedious to withdraw only GH¢300 every day.
Information gathered by the Daily Graphic indicated that customers were on previous days allowed to retrieve GH¢500, but the amount reduced due to their large numbers.
Complaints
A customer, who only gave her name as Sister Yaa, explained that she had been there the previous day to withdraw GH¢1,000 to pay her daughter’s school fees, but she was only given GH¢500.
Another customer lamented that she had been saving with the company for the past 10 years and had about GH¢20,000 with the bank.
“I came to the bank yesterday to withdraw some money because I needed money to pay back a loan I took from a friend to bail my brother who was arrested. When I came, I was told I could only take GH¢300. Now tell me, how do I pay back the loan on the scheduled date,” she said.
Other customers vowed not to ever save with a microfinance or a savings and loans company, as they did not have confidence in them anymore.
Appeal
An official of the company who declined to make her identity known said the current challenge was due to inadequate funds released from their headquarters to the branch.
“Today, for instance, we only received GH¢10,000, and what we are doing is to share the money among our customers so that everyone can get some money. We cannot give all the money to one or two people and leave the rest, so I want you all to calm down,” she appealed to the customers.
She assured the customers that management was doing its best to rectify the situation.