Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has stated that the apex bank will not extend the deadline for the use of old Naira notes.
Emefiele said this at the monthly Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting held in Abuja on Tuesday.
“I don’t have good news for those who feel we should shift the deadline; my apologies,” Emefiele said.
He stated that the 90-day timeframe already given for the exchange of the old naira notes for the new currency was enough time for Nigerians to visit their various commercial banks.
Emefiele added that he does not see the reason why the date should be extended, explaining that every measure was taken by the apex bank to ensure that the public was able to deposit their old currency before the deadline.
He noted that CBN met commercial banks to extend their banking hours and work days to Saturdays for Nigerians to meet the set deadline.
CBN in October 2022 announced that will redesign the N200, N500, N1,000 notes, and fixed Tuesday, January 31 as the deadline for the circulation of the old notes.
READ ALSO: CBN redesigns 200, 500, 1,000 naira notes
CBN has since directed all commercial banks to halt over-the-counter payment of the new notes and load their Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) with the redesigned naira notes to boost circulation.
The Senate and many Nigerians are calling for an extension of the deadline, stating that there has been a slow circulation of new naira notes.
