Several activities have continued to dominate the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)-led naira redesign policy which saw the emergence of new N200, N500 and N1,000 bank notes and allows bank customers to deposit old naira notes at their banks.
The policy which has quickened banks’ customers’ adoption of cash-less policy and activation of diverse e-payment channels in the e-payment space. The N2.7 trillion cash targeted in the exercise is expected to enhance CBN’s cash management systems and boost monetary policy decisions. Overall, the policy is expected to and give all Nigerians the opportunity to deposit their legitimately earned monies at the banks.
The new naira notes scarcity entered critical stage yesterday after Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) stopped dispensing naira notes to customers.
Fearing Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) sanctions, the banks stopped loading old notes in ATMs, and with scarcity of the new notes, the customers had no way to run to for badly needed cash.
With no cash in ATMs, many bank customers who ran to banking halls for cash had only one option, which was to take the old notes.
However, with only four days left for the December 31, deadline set by the CBN to return all N200, N500, and N1,000 old notes to to the banks, that also presents a difficult choice for many customers.
At the Matori branches of Fidelity Bank, FirstBank, Zenith Bank, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Unity Bank, GTBank, Access Bank, Ecobank, Sterling Bank, Globus Bank, none of their ATMs were dispensing cash.
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Many cardholders kept moving from one ATM point to the other, to see if anything had changed.
Kareem Adigun, one of the cardholders said he had checked at all the banks’ ATMs and none of the was dispensing cash.
“I have checked all the ATMs in Matori to make cash withdrawal, but none of them is dispensing cash. At the banking halls, the banks are only paid old notes, ” he said.
When the CBN monitoring team visited the Zenith Bank’s Epe branch, in Lagos, only one of the six ATMs was dispensing cash. That was the only ATM working in the entire Epe, Lagos leading to a very long queue in the bank. The ATMs of other banks’ branches in Epe like Polaris Bank, FirstBank were not dispensing cash.
“One of the cardholders, Tunde Kabir, said he has been in the branch since 10am and is yet to get cash. We have been here, and only one ATM is working. I am yet to make a withdrawal since morning,” he said.
Speaking during the CBN’s sensitization programme on the new naira notes in Epe, Lagos, CBN Deputy Director Governor’s Department, Moses Ademosu, said any bank that loads old notes will be sanctioned.
He said the apex bank is monitoring the ATMs to ensure compliance because the December 31, 2023 deadline for returning old notes is sacrosanct.
“We are not going to shift the deadline to return old notes to the banks. Let the people know that there will be no extension of that deadline,” he said.
The CBN team also visited Oluwo Modern Fish Market , Epe, Lagos, and several ATMs to ensure old notes were not dispensed.
Also speaking, CBN Deputy Director, Reserve Management Department, Mohammed Solaja, said the apex bank is committed to making the new notes available.
He said the notes have been supplied to the banks, and the CBN is working on ensuring that the notes are available.
CBN Deputy Director, Other Financial Institutions Supervision Department, Mrs. Monsurat Vincent, said people will gain ore by embracing cash-less banking.
She said the ultimate goal of the CBN is to ensure that people begin to carry out their transactions electronically to save cost and resources.
Speaking during the CBN’s team visit, the Paramount Ruler of Epe Land, Oba Kamorudeen Animashau, said the scarcity of the new naira notes is worrisome.
He said the new naira notes are not available, adding that the CBN should compel the banks to make the new notes available to their customers.
He said: “We need to be very careful, this is election year. That’s why we insist that the new notes should be available. The banks are still paying old notes. For the alternate e-payment channels the CBN is canvassing for, many people still do not know how to make electronic transfers. The CBN should leave room for the poor who cannot transfer money electronically”.
Oba Kamorudeen, said the many people, especially the low income earners, avoid e-payment channels because of the huge charges that they attract.
appreciated the government and the CBN and the team for the work they do. He promised to take the message to his people in 54 villages in Epe through the town crier so that the whole villages will know about government stand as regards to the old notes.
“I will inform my people that the deadline will not be extended, but please make the new notes available,” he told the CBN team.
On his part, Olu Epe of Epe Kingdom, Oba Shefiu Olatunji Adewale, appealed to the government for extension for the deadline based on the peculiarity of the Epe area.
According to him, Epe has a different terrain and because most of the people are market and fishermen and they have not seen the new notes. “For me, this is not the first time am seeing the new notes, however, it is difficult for me to get the new note and if it is difficult for me as their leader, then be rest assured that it is also difficult for them to get it. So I call for the extension of the deadline,” he said.
However, at the story seems different at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. Findings showed that 24 hours after the CBN ruled out extending the deadline for members of the public to deposit old notes, most banks in the FCT have increased the volume of new notes they dispense.
At the Garki 2 branch of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) were seen dispensing new notes and a staff of the bank confirmed to The Nation that they now dispense more new notes than the old notes.
The same was true of Sterling Bank, at the Central Business District. The Nation observed that the ATMs were dispensing new notes and a staff member also confirmed that “the bank is dispensing more new notes”.
At Zenith Bank on Ralph Sodehinde street, behind the Federal Ministry of Finance, the two ATMs were dispensing a mix of both old and new notes when The Nation visited the bank around 3pm on Wednesday.
CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele had disclosed on Tuesday that all banks had been instructed to ramp up the volume of new notes they feed into their ATMs.
According to him, “we mandated them and said no more payment of new notes over the counter which gives the opportunity for it to be given to friends but pay all new notes through the ATM which is a robot and everybody has to queue to get it and that has worked”.
He also confirmed the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) was still printing more new notes to supply the banking system.
From his briefing on Tuesday, it is obvious the CBN is determined to push through its Naira redesign policy as he made it clear to the body of state governors, the Governors Forum, that “we told them we have 1.4 million touch point of our super agents, those agents are going to be available to conduct cash exchanges or swap”.
“Let’s not forget that the super agents are like kiosks, shops, stores in your community going about their petty businesses so whether in riverine areas or upland areas they are there and will exchange or swap old notes that we have put in place.
