The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says the deadline for the validity of the old 200, 500 and 1,000 naira notes is still January 31.
Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, said this after the bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.
In October last year, Emefiele announced the naira redesign policy which entails the issuance of new higher denomination naira notes to replace the existing ones.
All the other denominations — N100, N50, N20, N10, and N5 notes — will continue to be in circulation while the current N200, N500, and N1,000 naira notes will cease to be legal tender in the country after January 31, 2023.
Emefiele, at the MPC meeting, said the 90-day window given by the CBN for Nigerians to deposit their old currencies was enough.
“We called on the deposit money banks (DMBs) to extend their working hours, and to work on weekends,” he said.
“There is no reason to talk about a shift. The new currencies are available.”
