CBN affirms legal tender status of old naira notes

On Wednesday, the Central Bank of Nigeria issued a warning not to reject any naira notes that were generated in compliance with the CBN Act 2007 regulations.

Concerns that the old banknotes will no longer be valid by December 2023, leading to their rejection in certain regions of the nation, prompted the CBN to make the announcement.

The CBN Director of Corporate Communication, Dr. Isah Abdulmunin, signed a statement that made this claim on Wednesday.

The statement claims that the withdrawal of the old notes has not been mandated by the apex bank.

The statement read, “Anxiety among certain public members has also been reported regarding the legality of old Naira banknotes.”

“To avoid any misunderstandings, we would like to clarify that all banknotes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) are legal tender and should not be refused by anyone, in accordance with Section 20(5) of the CBN Act, 2007.” We also reiterate that there are enough banknotes in circulation nationwide to support all regular economic activities.

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According to the CBN, all of its branches nationwide have been instructed to keep issuing various denominations of the outdated and redesigned banknotes in sufficient numbers to deposit money banks (DMBs) for subsequent distribution to bank clients.

The highest bank added, “We would want to reiterate that all banknote denominations issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) are still valid forms of payment.

According to CBN Act, 2007 Section 20(5), no one has the right to refuse to accept Naira as payment. Therefore, it is recommended that the general people accept all currently in circulation CBN-issued banknotes and exercise caution while making panic withdrawals.

Additionally, the bank reiterated that the nation has a enough supply of banknotes to support regular economic activity.