The Central Bank of Nigeria has warned against the rejection of any bank notes it has issued in line with the provision of the CBN Act 2007.
The CBN said this amidst fears that the old banknotes may cease to be legal tender by December 2023 which has led to its rejection in some parts of the country.
The apex bank said in a statement issued on Wednesday and signed by its Director, Corporate Communication, Isah Abdulmunin, that it has not ordered the withdrawal of the old notes.
The bank said, “There have also been reports of anxiety among some members of the public over the legality or otherwise of old Naira banknotes.
“For the avoidance of doubt, while reiterating that there are sufficient banknotes across the country for all normal economic activity, we wish to state unambiguously that every banknote issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) remains legal tender and should not be rejected by anyone, as stipulated in Section 20(5) of the CBN Act, 2007.”
The CBN said it has directed all its branches across the country to continue to issue different denominations of old and redesigned banknotes in adequate quantities to deposit money banks (DMBs) for onward circulation to bank customers.
The apex bank said, “We wish to restate that all denominations of banknotes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) remain legal tender.
“In line with Section 20(5) of the CBN Act, 2007, no one should refuse to accept the Naira as a means of payment. Consequently, members of the public are advised to accept all CBN-issued banknotes currently in circulation and guard against panic withdrawals.”
The bank also reaffirmed that there is sufficient stock of currency notes to facilitate normal economic activities in the country.
