The Central Bank governor- Godwin Emefiele, on Wednesday said that the apex bank would redesign the Country’s currency.
"On the basis of these trends, problems, and facts, and in line with Sections 19, Subsections a and b of the CBN Act 2007, the Management of the CBN sought and obtained the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari to redesign, produce, and circulate new series of banknotes at N100, N200, N500, and N1,000 levels," the statement added.
The CBN also said that, "Accordingly, all Deposit Money Banks currently holding the existing denominations of the currency may begin returning these notes back to the CBN effective immediately. The newly designed currency will be released to the banks in the order of First-come-First-serve basis.
"Customers of banks are enjoined to begin paying into their bank accounts the existing currency to enable them withdraw the new banknotes once circulation begins in mid-December 2022. All banks are therefore expected to keep open, their currency processing centers from Monday to Saturday so as to accommodate all cash that will be returned by their customers."
Reacting to this latest development, some Nigerians say the redesign will bring a new face to the old currency. While some said this may affect the activities of the Bandits who already have the "Old" currency and might be faced with the issue of getting the new notes when in circulation.
In another reaction, some economists say there is no point in redesigning a devalued Currency, saying that the CBN Governor should rather focus on how to give more value to the Naira notes.