Nigeria: CBN Extends Deadline for Use of Old Naira Notes

The CBN governor, who spoke to journalists Sunday morning, stated he had the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari for the extension.

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has introduced a 10-day extension of the deadline for the usage of previous naira notes throughout Nigeria.

The CBN governor, who spoke to journalists Sunday morning, stated he had the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari for the extension.

The new deadline is now 10 February rather than the previous 31 January deadline, he stated.

Mr Emefiele spoke in Daura, Katsina State, after a assembly with the president who’s in his domestic state for official duties.

Mr Emefiele stated Nigerians, who’re but to vary their naira notes from the previous to new ones, now have an alternative to achieve this.

He stated individuals ought to utilise the alternative due to the fact the deadline shouldn’t be prolonged once more.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the CBN final October launched redesigned 200, 500 and 1000 naira notes and gave a deadline of thirty first January for the usage of the previous notes.

However, the brand new notes have been scarce, thus main to requires an extension.

Mr Emefiele didn’t elaborate on what the central financial institution was doing to resolve the shortage of the brand new notes.

Background

Last October, the apex financial institution introduced its choice to revamp the notes, including that members of the general public had been hoarding banknotes, with statistics displaying that over 85 per cent of the forex in circulation is external the vaults of industrial banks.

On Sunday, Mr Emefiele assured that the forex has yielded substantial outcomes.

“Available data at the bank showed that in 2015, currency-in-circulation was only N1.4 trillion. As of October 2022, currency in circulation had risen to N3.23 trillion; out of which only N500 billion was within the banking Industry and N2.7 trillion held permanently in people’s homes,” he stated.

He stated because the graduation of the programme, the CBN has collected about N1.9 trillion, “leaving us with about N900 billion (N500b + N1.9trillion).

“We are joyful that to date, the workout has achieved successful charge of over 75 per cent of the N2.7 trillion held external the banking system.

According to him, Nigerians inside the rural areas, villages, the aged and the weak have had the alternative to swap their previous notes, leveraging the Agent Naira Swap initiative as properly because the CBN Senior employees nationwide sensitisation crew workout.

“Aside from those holding illicit, stolen Naira in their homes for speculative purposes, we do aim to give all Nigerians that have Naira legitimately earned and trapped the opportunity to deposit their legitimately trapped monies at the CBN for exchange.”