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Bianca Mlilo, Business Reporter
RETAIL shops in Bulawayo have reduced the amount of money they give to consumers on the cashback facility to three times the value of products a client buys citing the prevailing cash shortages.

Given the continuing cash shortage in the formal banking sector scores of consumers have sought refuge in plastic money transactions at the point of sale machines in retail outlets while some have turned to mobile money transfer systems.  Before the reduction, many retailers were giving cash up to 10 times the value of goods a customer would have bought.

Consumers who spoke to Business Chronicle accused retail outlets of forcing them to buy more groceries in return for cash.

TM Pick ‘n’ Pay Hyper, Greens Supermarkets and Choppies (Bulawayo city centre branches) are among the players that offer cashback facility.

“I’ve bought a few items from Greens supermarket where I received the same amount I spent in the shop as cash back. Choppies and Pick ‘n’ Pay Hyper gave me the amount I had spent multiplied by three,” said a customer who declined to be named.

Another consumer, Thenjiwe Banda said: “I recently bought grocery items worth $15 at Pick ‘n’ Pay Hyper and was given $45 cash back, although I had hoped to get more.”

A Greens supermarket senior official who requested anonymity said the amounts given as cash back varied, depending on how much business the supermarkets would have recorded on a day.

“On most days we give 10 percent cash back but on busy days like today (yesterday) we give 30 percent as cash back,” said the official.

Choppies Zimbabwe director Siqokoqela Mphoko last week said their outlets were in support of the plastic money drive and were giving up to $200 cash back.

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has proposed to introduce bond notes into the market as part of measures to address the liquidity challenges.

It has also urged consumers to use plastic money to purchase goods and make payments of different bills to minimise demand for cash.