CBN Makes Final Decision on Old Naira Notes after Reps Dec 31 Deadline Instruction

• The Central Bank of Nigeria has restated that the old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes remain valid indefinitely
• The confirmation follows instructions from the House of Representatives for the CBN to withdraw the old naira notes
• The CBN Act of 2007 gives power to the bank for the control and administration of the monetary and financial sector policies
• Legit.ng journalist Dave Ibemere has over a decade of business journalism experience with in-depth knowledge of the Nigerian economy, stocks, and general market trends.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has confirmed that the old naira notes will remain legal tender indefinitely.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by Ag. Director of Corporate Communication, Hakama Sidi, on Thursday, October 24.

According to the media reports that it has fixed the deadline for the withdrawal of the old notes was false, Punch reports.

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The House of Representatives called on the CBN to issue more new N200, N500 and N1,000 notes and begin gradually withdrawing the old notes from circulation before the deadline of December 31, 2024.

However, the CBN stressed that there is no plan to stop the circulation of old naira notes.

CBN statement reads:

“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.

“It should 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 remain legal tender indefinitely.

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"We, therefore, advise members of the public to disregard suggestions that the aforementioned series of banknotes will cease to be legal tender on December 31, 2024.

"We urge Nigerians to continue accepting all Naira banknotes (old or redesigned) for their day-to-day transactions."

New exchange rates as naira crashes again

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the naira continued its poor performance against the US dollar in the official and unofficial forex markets.

The latest exchange rate marks the second straight day of heavy depreciation for the naira in official and parallel markets.

The forex market has remained volatile as the CBN struggles to tackle high seasonal forex demand.

Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng

Source: Legit.ng