Banks charge 42m euros for ATM cash withdrawals

Banks in Romania made over 157 million RON (42 million euros) from commissions charged for ATM cash withdrawals alone last year. According to data from the NBR (National Bank of Romania), in 2008 Romanians withdrew 78.6 billion RON from ATMs in Romania. Banks charged a commission of at least 0.2% of the sum withdrawn, therefore revenues collected in this manner amount to over 157 million RON. However, banks charge different commissions, depending on card usage. For example, the 0.2% commission is charged for cash withdrawals from ATMs of the bank that issued the card. Even in this case, the bank imposes a minimum level for the commission – 0.2 RON. If the cash is withdrawn from the ATM of another bank, the charged commission can climb to 0.5% or as much as 1% of the sum, to which a fixed fee of at least 2.5 RON is added. Such commissions are charged on debit cards. As for credit card withdrawals, commissions are even higher.