The Eid holiday is witnessing a great demand from families and young people for Eid junk from the locations specified by the Qatar Central Bank and covering the most prominent parts of the city of Doha.
Families were keen to withdraw enough cash for Eid days, in light of the increased demand for it from children and youth, and some preferred to keep it as a non-traditional gift on Eid al-Adha.
Bank work teams have reinforced cash amounts in ATMs, including devices that have Eid scrap as determined by the Qatar Central Bank before the Eid holiday, since June 22.
Al-Eidiya “Eid Scrap” allows cash denominations to be withdrawn with a value of: 5 riyals – 10 riyals – 50 – 100 riyals.
ATMs are located in each of Place Vendome Mall – Mirqab Mall – Mall of Qatar – Al Wakra Old Market – Doha Festival City – Al Hazm Mall – Al Khor Mall – Al Meera Al Thumama – Al Meera Muaither – Doha West Walk.
According to Al-Arab follow-up, there are large numbers of citizens and residents waiting for their turn in the withdrawal operations in the Eid scrap machines, especially in commercial complexes and markets.
Mall services
For its part, a number of banks announced the opening of their branches in a number of commercial complexes – malls – to provide their services to customers, from operations that include depositing and withdrawing cash amounts and presenting checks in addition to other services.
QNB Group announced that the branches that will operate as usual during the entire Eid holiday, 24 hours a day, are the online branch in Porto Arabia, The Pearl.
And that the branches in the following locations will continue to provide their services from the day of Arafa until the end of the official holiday during the evening period only, except for the first days of Eid: The Mall – City Center – Landmark Villaggio, QNB Main Branch – Lagoona Mall – Mall of Qatar – Festival City – Fereej Sharq – Plus fandom.
All branches will resume business as usual after the end of the scheduled holidays. With the exception of the branches whose work is related to the sites of ministries, public authorities and institutions, they are subject to the Eid leave prescribed for government departments.
QIIB announced that the bank’s branches in Doha Festival – The Mall – Mall of Qatar will operate during the Eid holiday, with the rest of the bank’s branches closed.
The working hours of the branches in these malls will be as follows: On Thursdays – working hours from: 11:00-18:00
On Friday – working hours: 21:00-16:00
Work will resume as usual in the operating branches, starting on Saturday 01/07/2023.
Reliance on alternative channels
She called on banks to rely on alternative channels during holidays, particularly mobile applications and bank websites to complete banking transactions, in order to save effort on customers and save time instead of attending the bank in person.
Banks confirmed the provision of all the services they provide on alternative electronic channels, whether bank mobile applications or bank websites, while taking all safe precautions to ensure the completion of banking operations without any risk, with speed in executing electronic customer requests.
Banks operating in Qatar are witnessing a great demand for electronic services that they provided during the current period with the holiday season and travel abroad, whether for citizens traveling for tourism or for residents traveling on their country’s annual leave.
Automated teller machines in all regions of the country also witnessed large withdrawals during that period, after the salaries were deposited in the employees’ accounts several days before the holiday, in order to facilitate them before the holiday to finance their increasing needs, and the expenses of families of citizens and residents, which increased during that period.
For their part, banks have strengthened and supported the liquidity available in ATMs, to face the continuous withdrawals, and some Gulf currencies witnessed a demand during the Eid period, including the Saudi riyal and the UAE dirham, as some families tended to travel to visit their relatives during the Eid holiday.
Launching new offers
A number of bank and branch managers confirmed that new offers have been launched on most services, the most important of which are loans, personal finance, car finance and other services. Pointing out that a large number of customers have benefited, especially those who are looking for personal financing for various purposes, whether citizens or residents.
They explained that the current week is witnessing an increase in the demand for banking services, including transfers, purchasing currencies from banks, and increasing cash withdrawals from ATMs. Therefore, banks have prepared to facilitate individual transactions, with a focus on alternative channels during this period to complete banking transactions, foremost of which is the phone – mobile bank – Banking applications on mobile devices have been developed to provide all banking services and transactions to facilitate customers, starting from paying installments, to obtaining various financings and obtaining a check book.
Automated teller machines (ATMs) have also been supported in all regions with additional liquidity to meet the increasing demand and provide customers with cash needs, especially in areas witnessing a high demand for the use of these machines, such as commercial centers, malls and market areas.
They emphasized that there is a high demand for buying foreign currencies in banks and striving to provide them, whether in dollars or other currencies, to support the needs of families in the resident countries.
Safety tips when using an ATM
Banks asked customers to follow a number of useful tips and instructions and safety measures to help ensure safety when using ATMs and points of sale to conduct transactions:
Be alert and aware of your surroundings when using ATMs
Choose ATMs in well-lit public places to conduct your transactions
Do not accept assistance from anyone you do not know or a suspicious person when using an ATM
Do not disclose your money to others when making any transaction using an ATM
Check that the amount of your transaction matches the amount printed on the receipt
Safety tips when using your bank card
Sign the back of your card as soon as you receive it
Don’t forget to retrieve the card from the ATM or point of sale after making the transaction
Make sure to keep your card in your possession or control
Do not lend your card to any friend or family member
Keep your card away from magnetic materials
Safety tips when using a PIN
Be sure to cover the number pad when entering your PIN
Save your PIN and don’t write it anywhere
Do not disclose your personal identification number to anyone
Always choose a hard-to-guess PIN
Change your PIN from time to time
