Nigeria’s Apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has warned that banks that still dispense the old bank notes through their Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) will face the full wrath and penalty of the regulator, even as the January 31, 2023 deadline for phase out draws near.
Speaking during a sensitization event at the informal ICT market hub, Computer Village in Lagos on Wednesday, Director of the Legal Services Department of the CBN, Mr. Kofo Salam-Alada, who represented the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, affirmed the availability of the new currency notes: “I can tell you today that the CBN on daily basis issue out the new notes. As we speak, banks are with the CBN taking money. We are actually begging banks to come and take money from Central Bank. We have these new naira notes in our vaults and we are begging banks to come and take it.”
He further noted steps the apex bank is taking ensure compliance: “We found out that a lot of things are happening that we need to checkmate, so we stopped withdrawal of new notes over the counter to ensure that everyone can have access to it and not one chief who is known to the manager, walks in, and carts away all the new notes in a particular branch. That is why we said it should be in the ATMs which cannot distinguish people.
We also have monitors going around banks now. I have been to some ATMs this morning and I have done the reports. We are not mobilising the masses against the banks because the banks are there to serve you, but be rest assured that they will serve you now that they know that the CBN is on them to serve you with the new naira notes.”
Reacting to questions from traders in the market that some people were selling the new notes, he said anyone caught selling the new notes or any denomination of the naira would be jailed.
Responding to the sensitization move by CBN, President of Coalition of Associations in Computer Village, Timi Davies, while applauding the introduction of the new Naira notes as a good initiative had expressed worries: “But unfortunately, the new notes are not well circulated within our market. The ATM machines are not dispensing the new notes and only a few privileged ones seem to be having access to the new notes.
“We want to encourage the CBN and the government to enforce the deadline on the banks. There should be no bank that should not be giving the new naira from their ATMs. All ATMs should load the new notes. As we are giving the old notes, we should be able to get the new notes. If the ATMs are not dispensing, the new notes will not flow around.”
Olukosi of Ikeja Land, Chief Lateef Oluseyi, who was also in attendance, assured the CBN of the support of the traditional ruling house in educating the community, and dispelled rumours that the new naira was not durable.
According to him, the new note with more than 35 security features is not easy for counterfeiters to make.
The CBN had earlier noted that there will be no extension to the January 31 to June 30, 2023 deadline for phasing out of the old N1,000, N500 and N200 notes as the move is to ensure that corrupt individuals do not usurp the opportunity.
“The currency redesign will assist in the fight against corruption as the exercise will rein in the higher denomination used for corruption, and the movement of such funds from the banking system can be tracked easily.”
The CBN Acting Branch Controller in Ondo State, Mr. Giwa Ademola, said: “The benefits of the currency redesign to the Nigerian economy are enormous given that this policy will help to control inflation, as the exercise will bring the hoarded currency into the banking system, thereby making monetary policy more effective.
It will also help with better design and implementation of monetary policy as we will have much more accurate data on money supply and monetary aggregates.”
He quoted statistics that show that N2.72 trillion out of the $3.26 trillion currency in circulation as of June 2022 was outside the vaults of commercial banks across the country, and supposedly held by members of the public. “This statistic shows that 84.71% of currency in circulation is outside the vaults of commercial banks, with only 15.29% in the central bank and commercial banks’ vaults.”
