Soludo: CBN has directed banks to dispense, accept old notes… Emefiele confirmed it to me

Chukwuma Soludo, Anambra governor, says the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed commercial banks to pay out old and new naira notes to customers.

In a statement on Monday, Soludo said Godwin Emefiele, the CBN governor, confirmed the directive personally to him in a phone conversation, after meeting with the Bankers’ Committee over the weekend.

Two weeks ago, the supreme court invalidated the naira redesign policy introduced by the CBN, citing a defective timing and implementation.

Delivering judgment in a suit instituted by three states of the federation, a seven-member panel of the apex court held that the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes remain legal tender until December 31, 2023.

It has been nearly two weeks since the supreme court, there is still uncertainty about the true status of things as the old notes being rejected by traders, even though some banks are dispensing them.

There are also reports that banks are refusing to accepts deposits of the old currency notes.

Soludo, speaking on issue, said the CBN gave the directive at a meeting with the Bankers’ Committee held on Sunday, 12th March.

“Commercial banks have been directed by the central bank to dispense old currency notes and to also receive same as deposits from customers,” the governor said.

“Tellers at the commercial banks are to generate the codes for deposits and there is no limit to the number of times an individual or company can make deposits.

“The governor of the CBN gave the directive at a Bankers’ Committee meeting held on Sunday, 12th March, 2023. The Governor, Dr. Godwin Emefiele, personally confirmed the above to me during a phone conversation on Sunday night.

“Residents of Anambra are therefore advised to freely accept and transact their businesses with the old currency notes (N200; N500; and N1,000) as well as the new notes.”

Soludo also urged residents report any bank that refuses to accept deposits of the old notes.

“Anambra state government will not only report such a bank to the CBN, but will also immediately shut down the defaulting branch,” he added.

Last week, TheCable reported that some commercial banks started to pay out the old notes to customers following a directive from the CBN.