Posted by On Tuesday, the CBN announced that the old naira notes would continue to be accepted as currency till the end of 2023.
Director of Corporate Communications, Isa AbdulMumin, issued the following statement on behalf of the central bank:
Remember that the Supreme Court gave a new date, December 31, 2023, for the elimination of the old naira notes?
In response to rumors of legal uncertainty, the CBN released a statement assuring Nigerians that their old naira notes will continue to be accepted.
Notwithstanding, it has pushed back “the legal tender status deadline of the old design of N200, N500, and N1,000 denominations, ad infinitum.”
This is in line with global best practices and is meant to prevent past mistakes from being repeated.
Accordingly, all banknotes produced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in compliance with Section 20(5) of the CBN Act 2007 shall remain legal money in perpetuity, i.e., beyond the initial deadline of December 31, 2023.
The Central Bank of Nigeria is collaborating with the proper authorities to overturn a previous court verdict on this matter.
Thus, to and from deposit money banks (DMBs), all CBN branches across the country will continue to print and accept all denominations of Nigerian banknotes, both old and new.
“The general public is enjoined to continue to accept all Naira banknotes (old or redesigned) for day-to-day transactions and to handle these banknotes with the utmost care to safeguard and protect the lifecycle of the banknotes,” the statement stated.
The CBN also encouraged people to use non-traditional payment methods, such as online marketplaces, for their regular purchases.