CBN also disclosed it has been urging banks to come forward and collect the new N200, N500 and N1,000 naira notes and distribute to customers
By Kehinde Okeowo
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Wednesday, January 18, said it restricted the disbursement of the new naira notes to ATMs to curb abuse and ensure access to all bank customers.
CBN also disclosed that it has been urging banks to come forward and collect the new N200, N500 and N1,000 naira notes and distribute them to customers
The apex bank made this known through its Director of Legal Services, Kofo Salam-Alada, who made the pronouncements at a sensitisation programme at Computer Village, Ikeja, Lagos.
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Speaking on the scarcity of the new naira notes and continued disbursement of old notes by ATMs of banks, Salam-Alada said the CBN will take punitive measures against banks who fail to collect the new notes, as well as those not disbursing them via their ATMs.
He also urged the public to ensure they deposit their old notes to their respective banks on or before the deadline date as the old notes will cease to be legal tender by January 31.
He said: “I can tell you today the CBN on a daily basis gives out the new notes. As we speak now banks are with the CBN taking money.
“I am reliably told that we are actually begging commercial banks to come and take money (the new notes) from the CBN. We have these new naira notes in our vaults and we are waiting for banks to come and collect them.
“To also let you know the seriousness of CBN for these new naira notes to permeate everywhere, we have found out that a lot of things are happening, and we stopped the across-the-counter withdrawal of new naira notes to ensure that you, you, you can have access to it.
“Not a situation where, one chief, who is known to the Manager or everyone will cart away all the new naira notes from a particular branch.
“And that is why we said if you want the new naira notes walk to the ATM where there is no distinction between myself and the hawker over there.
“Part of what we are doing is that we have monitors going around banks. I have been to some ATMs this morning and I have logged reports, I have spoken to management of various banks. When I am in any bank, I speak with the Head Office, I ask them, where are the new naira notes we gave you, and you will start hearing an explanation.
“What you have been experiencing will actually ease off very soon because the banks now know there will be a penalty for failure to come and pick the new naira notes from the CBN and for failure to load the notes into their branches.”
Meanwhile, CBN took to its various social media pages on Friday, January 13, 2023, to tell Nigerians that the deadline date will not be extended.
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