Claims that the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, intended to phase out the new N1000, N500, and N200 notes due to scarcity have prompted a response.
Recall how Nigerians had been complaining about the lack of the newly designed naira notes all around the nation.
The incident coincides with the first quarter of 2023’s months-long cash shortage that hit Nigeria’s economy because of the CBN’s adoption of a cashless policy.
The apex bank, however, referred to the claim of the intention to phase out the redesigned naira notes presented by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 23, 2023, as inaccurate and untrue in a statement by the acting Director of Corporate Communications, Dr. Isa Abdulmumim.
Claims that CBN is considering removing the freshly redesigned notes from circulation have been completely disregarded. He emphasized that the rumors were baseless and intended to frighten the public.
“Therefore, we strongly advise the general public to ignore any reports that indicate the revised currency will eventually be phased out. For the avoidance of dispute, both the old and the redesigned notes will be recognized as legal money.
“They will circulate side-by-side for transactions ahead of the December 31, 2023 deadline, when the old N1000, N500 and N200 banknotes will eventually be phased out”, the statement partly reads.