Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, bowed to pressure on Monday and formally ordered commercial banks to follow the Supreme Court’s ruling, which ordered the use of old N, 1000 and N 500 notes as legal tender until December 31, 2023.
Also, he declared that until the end If the year, the old N200, N500, and N1,000 would be accepted as legal money.
Emefiele claimed that the choice was made during a meeting with the Bankers’ Committee on Sunday.
The misunderstanding regarding the legitimacy of the old naira notes has been resolved as a result of the development. The move is also anticipated to lessen the suffering of Nigerians who have experienced great challenges due to a shortage of new naira notes in the wake of the contentious restriction on the use of older notes.
The latest development was announced in a statement headed “Old N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes remain legal money – CBN” by Isa AbdulMumin, acting director of corporate communications.
According to the statement, “Deposit money banks operating in Nigeria have been directed to comply with the Supreme Court ruling from March 3, 2023. This is in keeping with the established tradition of obedience to court orders and sustenance of the rule of law principle that characterized the government of President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd. ), and by extension, the operations of the Central Bank of Nigeria as a regulator.
In light of this, the CBN met with the Bankers’ Committee and decided that the existing N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes should continue to be accepted alongside the new banknotes through December 31, 2023. As a result, everyone involved is commanded to do so.
