Many BFIs are still shuttering their branch offices before 3 pm, reducing their normal banking services. BFIs have not been able to resume their extended hour services that they had been providing to clients. Bankers say that the shortage of diesel and long power cuts have compelled them to reduce banking hours.
“Shortage of diesel still persists. Banks are not getting sufficient amount of diesel to run generators at their branch offices," Ratna Raj Bajracharya, CEO of Sunrise Bank Ltd, said. "Shortage of petrol has hit regular operation of the banks, compelling them to shorten their operation hours."
Most of the branch offices of the BFIs in Kathmandu valley have pasted notice in their office, informing clients about their decision to reduction working hours. Nabil Bank Ltd has gone to the extent of notifying its clients in Kathmandu Valley to check load shedding schedule before visiting some of its branch offices.
"Due to acute fuel shortage and increasing power cuts, normal banking services from some of our branch offices in the Kathmandu Valley during power cuts may not be as regular as before," reads the notice of the bank. "Therefore we request our valued customers availing services from following branches to refer to the latest load-shedding schedule published by Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) or contact us on our numbers to ensure availability of services prior to visiting the branch," it added.
Nabil Bank has been providing regular banking services from only it 10 branches offices out of 20 offices in Kathmandu Valley.
Many BFIs have not been able to resume their holiday and extended counters.
However, Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) Spokesperson Trilochan Pangeni claimed that all the branch offices of BFIs are providing regular banking services.
"There is no need to reduce banking hours as supply of diesel has already comes to normalcy," he added.
President of Development Bankers Association of Nepal, Krishna Raj Lamichhane, told Republica that BFIs were finding it difficult to provide extended hour services to their clients due to shortage of petrol. "Most of the branch offices run through petrol generators. Though supply of diesel has become normal, shortage of petrol has forced BFIs to reduce their extended hour services," he added.
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