BREAKING: CBN to launch new N200, N500, N1000 notes December
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced the launch of new naira notes of N200, N500 and N1,000 before the end of the year.
The newly redesigned Naira notes are to come into use, on December 15, 2022.
The CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele disclosed this at a press conference on Wednesday.
The Apex bank boss revealed that the new currencies will include the N200, N500 and N1000 notes.
According to him, “it is worrisome that 85 per cent of the currency in circulation is being hoarded by Nigerians.”
He further urged Nigerians to proceed to their banks to deposit their naira notes, adding that the deposit fee would be waived for transactions below N150,000.
The CBN governor stated that the redesigning of naira notes would help to curb counterfeit notes, as well as hamper ransom payments to terrorists and kidnappers.
He added that the existing notes would cease to be regarded as legal tender after mopping them by January 31, 2023.
He advised Nigerians to take their old notes to banks in exchange for new ones.
The apex bank, Emefiele stated, has secured the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari to roll out new notes to replace the existing currency in circulation.
“In line with the provisions of Sections 2(b), Section 18(a) and Section 19, Seb section(a) and (b) (2007), the management of the CBN has sought and obtained the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari to redesign, produce, release and circulate new series of banknotes at N200, N500 and N1,00 levels,” he said.
“In line with this approval, we have finalised arrangements for the new currency to begin circulation from December 15, 2022, after its launch by President Buhari.
“The new and existing currencies shall remain legal tender and circulate together until January 31, 2023, when the existing currencies shall cease to be a legal tender.”
Once the new notes are designed Nigerians are expected to take old notes to banks for the new notes.
The CBN Governor is also concerned about how Nigerian currency is being stored currently.
According to him, the bulk of the nation’s currency notes was outside bank vaults and the CBN would not allow the situation to continue.
Emefiele added, “To be more specific, as of the end of September 2022, available data at the CBN indicates that N2.7 trillion out of the N3.3 trillion currency in circulation was outside the vault of commercial banks across the country and supposedly held by members of the public.
“Evidently, currency in circulation has more than doubled since 2015, rising from N1.46 trillion in December 2015 to N3.2 trillion as of September 2022. I must say that this is a worrisome trend that must not be continued to be allowed.”
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