Victor Ezeja
Few hours after the judgment of the Supreme Court on the issue, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed banks in the country to issue and accept the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes alongside the redesigned versions of the banknotes until further notice.
The Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi had last week filed an application before the supreme court, seeking a deadline extension. He explained that due to the current economic crisis, the Federal Government has not been able to print the volume of new notes that would enable it phase out old currency before 31st of December.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelIn a statement on Wednesday giving effect to the apex court ruling, its acting Director of Corporate Communications, Ali Hakama, disclosed that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed all its branches to continue to issue and accept all denominations of Nigerian banknotes, old and redesigned, to and from deposit money banks (DMBs).
He noted that this is coming on the heels of the order of the Supreme Court on the 29th of November, granting the prayer of the Minister of Justice and Attomey-General of the Federation to extend the use of old Naira banknotes ad infintum.
The statement continues, “For the avoidance of doubt, the Supreme Court ordered that the old versions of the N200, N500, and 631,000 banknotes shall continue to be legal tender, alongside the re-designed versions.
“Accordingly, in line with Section 20(5) of the CBN Act 2007, all banknotes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will continue to remain legal tender indefinitely.
“Members of the public are enjoined to continue to accept all Naira banknotes (old or redesigned) for their day-to-day transactions and handle these banknotes with the utmost care to safeguard and protect the lifecycle of the banknotes.
“Furthermore, the general public is encouraged to embrace alternative modes of payment, such as e-channels, in order to reduce pressure on the use of physical cash.”
