CBN directs banks on old, re-designed naira notes

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Wednesday directed banks to continue issuing and accepting all denominations of Nigerian old and redesigned banknotes.

The apex bank also directed its branches to accept the notes from deposit money banks (DMBs).

This is in response to the Supreme Court’s decision on Wednesday, granting an extension for the use of old Naira notes.

A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court led by John Okoro had in March ordered the Central Bank to continue to receive the old notes from Nigerians until 31 December 2023.

The court had held that the directive of then President Muhammadu Buhari for the redesign of the new notes and withdrawal of the old notes without due consultation was invalid.

At Wednesday’s proceedings, the Supreme Court ruled that the old notes remain legal tender until they are replaced with the redesigned notes.

Subsequently, the Central Bank, in a statement, affirmed the order.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Supreme Court ordered that the old versions of N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes shall continue to be legal tender, alongside the re-designed versions,” the bank said.

“Accordingly, in line with Section 20(5) of the CBN Act 2007, all banknotes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), will continue to remain legal tender, indefinitely. Members of the public are enjoined to continue to accept all Naira banknotes (old or redesigned) for their day-to-day transactions and handle these banknotes with the utmost care, to safeguard and protect the lifecycle of the banknotes.”

The Central Bank urged the public to accept both old and redesigned Naira banknotes for transactions while handling them carefully.

The bank also encouraged Nigerians to adopt alternative payment methods and e-channels to ease reliance on physical cash.