Nigerian government to unveil new naira notes Wednesday

The Nigerian Government will on Wednesday formally unveil the new naira notes, which is expected to precede the weekly cabinet meeting to be presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at State House Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT)

Penpushing reports that, sources said the President will do the unveiling except he changes his plan,.while it is recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN)  had on October 26 announced its plan to redesign N200, N500 and N1000 naira notes.

The apex bank gave December 15, 2022 as the date to start circulating the new notes, explaining that it would redesign the naira notes to have control of the amount of currency in circulation, and to enable it manage inflation and tackle counterfeiting.

Penpushing further reports that, Governor of Central Bank (CBN), Godwin Emefiele had noted that primary challenges include significant hoarding of banknotes by members of the public, with statistics showing that over 85 percent of currency in circulation are outside the vaults of commercial banks

“These challenges primarily include: Significant hoarding of banknotes by members of the public, with statistics showing that over 85 percent of currency in circulation are outside the vaults of commercial banks’,Emefiele stated.

“To be more specific, as at the end of September 2022, available data at the CBN indicate that N2.73 Trillion out of the N3.23 trillion currency in circulation, was outside the vaults of Commercial Banks across the country; and supposedly held by the public’, he added.

“Evidently, currency in circulation has more than doubled since 2015; rising from N1.46 trillion in December 2015 to N3.23 trillion in September 2022. This is a worrisome trend that cannot be allowed to continue”, Emefiele stressed

Penpushing also reports that, the bank authorities while responding to concerns about Nigerians in the rural areas especially as the timeframe for submission of the old note is short, assured that it has made provision for easy exchange.

The Central Bank of Nigeia(CBN) in a statement  disclosed that  it is working with relevant agencies in the financial system in its execution, particularly in ensuring that vulnerable citizens are not at disadvantage during and after the exercise.

“Whilst noting the progressive increase in financial access points and alternative banking channels over the years (electronic/internet banking, mobile apps, ATM, Cards/PoS, eNaira, agent banking, etc.), the Bank acknowledges that these may not be evenly distributed across all geopolitical zones and in some rural area’.

“In operationalizing this initiative, the CBN has been collaborating with relevant agencies and other stakeholders in the financial system in its execution, particularly ensuring that vulnerable citizens are not disenfranchised”, the statement emphaised

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