Cheque clearance volume down by 30%

Kathmandu December 8- Banks and financial institutions (BFIs) have seen a 30 percent drop in transactions by cheque in recent weeks, reflecting a contraction in economic activities due to a long-running Tarai banda and Indian blockade.

According to Nepal Clearing House Limited (NCHL), which clears cheques of A, B and C class BFIs, the number of cheques brought for clearance has come down to 20,000 to 22,000 daily from more than 31,000 a day.

This is obviously due to a reduction in financial transactions as a result of sluggish economic activities in the country,” said Neelesh Man Singh Pradhan, Chief Executive Officer of NCHL. Despite the smaller volume of cheques, there is not much effect on turnover though,” he added. “Cheques worth Rs10 billion are being cleared daily compared to around Rs13 billion a day previously,” he said.

The highest recorded single-day cheque clearance by NCHL stands at 78,000. Pradhan said the NCHL system has the capacity to clear more than 100,000 cheques a day.

Electronic cheque clearing began four years ago in the country. Source: TKP