By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has denied reports that it has been given till December 31, 2024, to phase out all the old series of Naira banknotes.
It was reported on Thursday that the House of Representatives had directed the apex bank to take the old Naira notes from circulation by the end of this year.
Nigeria currently has two versions of its Naira notes in circulation as a result of the Naira Redesign Policy of the former Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, introduced in 2022.
Mr Emefiele, under the immediate past administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, redesigned the N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes, but this was resisted by the state governments, which challenged the policy at the Supreme Court and won.
The central bank, due to the apex court ruling, allowed the old and new Naira notes to remain legal tender in the country.
Apparently worried by the panic likely to be caused by the latest news, the CBN on Thursday night issued a statement signed by its acting Director of Corporate Communications, Mrs Sidi Ali Hakama, said it has no directive to mop up the old currency notes by the end of the year.
“The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to discussions at different fora suggesting that the old series of the N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes shall cease to be legal tender on December 31, 2024. We wish to state categorically that such claims are false and calculated to disrupt the country’s payment system.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the order of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on Wednesday, November 29, 2023, granting the prayer of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to extend the use of old Naira banknotes ad infinitum, subsists.
“Similarly, the CBN’s directive to all its branches to continue to issue and accept all denominations of Nigerian banknotes, old and re-designed, to and from deposit money banks (DMBs) remains in force.
“It will be recalled that the Supreme Court ordered that the old series of N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes shall continue to be legal tender alongside the redesigned versions.
“Accordingly, all banknotes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will continue to remain legal tender indefinitely.
“We, therefore, advise members of the public to disregard suggestions that the said series of banknotes will cease to be legal tender on December 31, 2024.
“We urge Nigerians to continue to accept all Naira banknotes (old or redesigned) for their day-to-day transactions and handle them with the utmost care to safeguard and protect their lifecycle.
“Furthermore, the general public is encouraged to embrace alternative modes of payment, e-channels, in order to reduce pressure on the use of physical cash,” the statement said.