The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it will not cause Nigerians further pain by phasing out the old Naira notes in December.
According to a Bank official, the old naira notes -N200, N500 and N1000 will remain as legal tender beyond December 31,2023.
The CBN clarification comes as some states in the North currently experience another bout of Naira crunch.
It would be recalled that the apex bank had in March announced that, in compliance with the verdict of the Supreme Court, the affected banknotes would cease to be in circulation by December 31.
The CBN under Former governor ,Godwin Emefiele, redesigned the N200, N500 and N1,000 notes last year and urged citizens to deposit their old notes before January 31, 2023, otherwise they would cease to be legal tender.
That directive resulted in a cash crunch across the country before and after the general election with grave consequences on the citizens leading to protests and attacks on banks in some cities .
Meanwhile , an official of the CBN has assured that the bank would not force the December 31 deadline on Nigerians since the old and new notes are all legal tender
The official told newsmen on Wednesday that there is no need to panic over the deadline saying the “phase out of the old naira notes will be gradual”.
