The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has begun a programme intended to increase the speed of circulation of the new banknotes and increase awareness ahead of next week’s deadline for demonetisation of the old notes kicks off nationwide today.
The initiative, known as cashswap, will provide an opportunity for Nigerians to swap old notes with new ones at super agents across the country. The intervention targets residents in rural areas and individuals with limited access to financial services.
The programme is a joint initiative of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), deposit money banks and super agents.
In a circular announcing the programme on Friday, the apex bank said the swap deal is an attempt to create more awareness about the deadline for phase-out of the old N200, N500 and N1,000 banknotes.
The launch of the programme is not unconnected with the challenges rural dwellers could face returning their old banknotes to banks between now and next Tuesday after which they will cease to be legal tenders.
The Senate has called for an extension of the deadline to the end of the first half of the year. Governors have also weighed in, seeking variations in CBN’s naira redesign policy.
In a survey conducted by The Guardian, some Nigerians also urged CBN to shift the deadline by another six months.
But the monetary authority said there is no compelling reason to extend it, saying there are multiple channels, including agents operating in rural areas, where Nigerians could return the banknotes.
CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, also argued that 100 days, from when the policy was announced till January 31, was enough window for Nigerians with legitimate cash in their homes to return same.
The bank had suspended charges on above-limit cash deposits and called on commercial banks to extend operations till weekends to enable individuals to return cash in their possession.
But there appears to be sabotage on the part of banks in recent weeks as most of them have disregarded a regulatory directive to stop giving out old banknotes, especially at automated teller machines (ATMs).
Despite threats by CBN, some ATMs in Lagos were still dispensing old notes at the weekend.
The circular on cash swap signed by the Director of Banking Supervision Department, Haruna Mustafa, stated: “The programme enables citizens in rural areas or those with limited access to formal financial services to exchange old Naira notes for redesigned notes.”
The initiative entails exchanging the old N1000, N500, N200 for the newly redesigned notes and/or the existing lower denominations (N100, N50 and N20), which remain legal tender.
The CBN explained that agents shall exchange a maximum of N10,000 per person, saying amounts above N10,000 may be treated as cash-in deposit into wallets or bank accounts in line with the cashless policy.
“BVN, NIN, or voter cards details of the customers should be captured as much as possible. To promote financial inclusion, this service is also available to anybody without a bank account. Agents may, on request instantly open a wallet or account, leveraging the CBN Tiered Know Your Customer (KYC) Framework.
“This will ensure that this category of the populace are able to exchange or deposit their cash seamlessly without taking unnecessary risk or incurring undue cost,” the circular said.
The bank stressed that agents shall sensitise customers on wallets/ bank account opening and other channels for conducting electronic transactions.
Designated agents are to collect the redesigned notes from DMBs in line with the Revised Cash Withdrawal Limit policy. While they are permitted to charge cash-out fees for the cash swap transactions, agents are prohibited from charging any further commissions.
“Principals (super agents, mobile money operators (MMOs) and DMBs) shall be held accountable for their agents’ adherence to the guidelines. Cash Swap agents will be readily identifiable in all local governments, particularly those in the rural area,” said the circular.
