Is CBN Still Collecting Old Naira Notes? See Latest News on Old Naira Note Deadline

Is CBN Still Collecting Old Naira Notes? In this article, we provide clarity on whether the CBN is still collecting old Naira notes and what the current status of the process is.

There has been confusion in Nigeria over whether the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is still collecting old Naira notes or not.

While the CBN had announced that it would receive the affected notes until February 17, 2023, after which they would undergo certain processes before going to the CBN, there have been reports that some members of the public who went to the apex bank to deposit their money were turned back.

Additionally, there have been conflicting reports on whether commercial banks have been directed by the CBN to continue collecting old Naira notes from customers.

Confusion over deadline for return of old notes

Nigeria is currently experiencing confusion over the deadline for the return of old Naira notes. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had previously announced that it would accept the affected notes until February 17, 2023, after which they would undergo certain processes before going to the CBN.

However, there have been reports that some members of the public who went to the apex bank to deposit their money were turned back.

According to CBN portal, only depositors with N500,000 and above were supposed to take their old notes to the CBN, and those with less were asked to take their old notes to their banks.

This has caused confusion among Nigerians who are unsure whether they should take their old notes to the CBN or their banks.

The confusion has been compounded by reports that some Deposit Money Banks have been collecting old Naira notes from members of the public, even though the CBN had denied giving such a directive.

The CBN issued a statement saying that it had not authorized the Deposit Money Banks to collect the old N500 and N1,000 banknotes, and that it had been directed to only reissue and re-circulate the old N200 banknotes, which would circulate as legal tender for 60 days up to April 10, 2023.

As of now, it is unclear whether the CBN is still accepting old Naira notes. The confusion has left many Nigerians unsure of what to do with their old notes, and has led to long queues at banks and the CBN as people attempt to deposit their money.

Banks accepting old N500 and N1000 notes

In recent days, there have been reports of some Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria opening their branches to customers for the purpose of collecting old N500 and N1,000 notes for deposit into their accounts.

This move has caused confusion among Nigerians, as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had previously announced that the deadline for the return of old notes was February 17, 2023, after which they would be required to undergo certain processes before going to the CBN to have the old notes accepted for deposits.

Contrary to the CBN’s claim that it did not instruct banks to continue to collect old notes from depositors, some banks, including Access Bank and Zenith Bank, have been reported to be accepting old notes from customers who have filled out the required form from the CBN portal and generated a reference code.

However, these banks have imposed a limit of N500,000 on the maximum amount that can be deposited at once, and customers are only allowed to deposit once.

The CBN had also opened a portal on its website for those willing to return their old notes to fill a form and generate a reference code, but it had previously stated that only depositors with N500,000 and above were to take their old notes to the CBN, while those with less were asked to take their old notes to their banks.

The confusion over the CBN’s position on the matter has left many Nigerians unsure of where to take their old notes for deposit.