The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made it clear that there will be no extension or shift in the deadline for depositing old naira notes.
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele apologized to Nigerians for not extending the deadline but stated that the 100 days from the announcement to the expiration date was enough time for Nigerians to deposit their old 200, 500 and 1,000 naira notes.
Emefiele assured the public that the ongoing sensitization efforts will continue even after the January 31st, 2023 deadline.
The apex bank has received between N1.3 trillion to N1.5 trillion so far but expects to recover over N2 trillion after the deadline.
The CBN Governor also announced that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has decided to aggressively increase the interest rate to 17.5 per cent.
Emefiele noted that despite the drop in inflation in December to 21.34 per cent, there was “no reason to celebrate.”