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Naira Redesign: CBN Deadline Insensitive, Spells Doom For Country’s Economy – Experts

Published

3 years ago

January 24, 2023

As the 31 January 2023 deadline given by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to phase out the old naira notes inches closer, economic experts have said that refusing to extend the deadline is insensitive and would spell doom for the country’s economy.

The call is an addition to several ones made by stakeholders, including the National Assembly, on extending the deadline for old naira notes to remain legal tender.

In December, the Senate beckoned on the CBN to shift the deadline from 31 January to June. The upper chamber made this call in a motion raised by Senator Ali Ndume and supported by his colleagues during a plenary.

The speed with which the apex implements the naira redesign policy in less than three months leaves more to wonder as fear of a real crisis heightens.

When contacted CBN’s director of Corporate Communications, Mr Osita Nwanisobi, he said he was indisposed to reply to our correspondents’ enquiry on the naira redesign deadline because he was attending the bank’s Monetary Policy Meeting.

Speaking with DAILY POST on the development, the CEO of Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, CPPE, Dr Muda Yusuf, said it would be insensitive if CBN insists on the 31 January, 2023, deadline.

According to him, the apex bank needs to be more realistic about the deadline based on the apparent adequacies and logistics gaps.

He said if CBN insists on implementing the 31 January deadline, it will infringe on citizens’ fundamental human rights.

“The CBN needs to be realistic about this deadline; there is still a lot of gap in the implementation of the naira redesign.

“Concerning the adequacy of the new naira notes, the quantity available is insufficient.

“The other gap regarding logistics, CBN never imagined the logistics implication.

“The logistical thing to do is to extend the deadline. It is going to dispose of citizens’ hard-earned money.

“It is most insensitive for CBN to insist on a deadline that would inflict another pain on Nigerians.

“It will create a whole lot of confusion in the system. CBN, an agency of government, should not toe this line.

“In other climes, they do current redesign policy implementation in two years. CBN wants to do it in less than two months here in Nigeria.

“The National Assembly and other stakeholders have called on the CBN to extend the 31 January deadline. President Muhammadu Buhari must add his voice, else the economy would be deeply affected.

“If CBN insists, it will be infringing on the fundamental human rights of Nigeria citizens,” he said.

A financial expert, Mr Idakolo Gbolade, said the CBN 31 January deadline is not feasible.

He stated that the CBN deadline extension would accelerate the policy implementation nationwide.

He said, “If the CBN does not flood the country with the new notes and even use other means of exchanging it for Nigerians apart from the commercial banks, I do not foresee a successful policy implementation in a week to the deadline.

“The CBN just came up with the cash swap policy for rural areas last week to exchange the old notes for the new ones. The cash swap policy will only succeed if the deadline is extended.

“I am now concluding that the deadline is punitive and could cause some uninformed Nigerians significant loss if the dynamics remain the same.”

Also, an Accounting and Financial Development don at Lead City University, Ibadan, Prof Godwin Oyedokun, said the deadline extension is inevitable.

According to him, Nigerians should not suffer the inefficiency of CBN and those responsible for governance.

“I have said it long before that extension of this date is inevitable.

“It is common knowledge that these notes are not out in commercial quantities.

“It is not our fault as citizens, and we cannot be made to suffer the inefficiency of those charged with governance.

“Now that the notes are not in circulation or in sufficient quantities, it is expected that the CBN should do the needful by extending this by some reasonable days”, he stated.

The CBN announced late last year, precisely October 26, the naira redesign policy, and barely a month after, 23 November, President Muhammadu Buhari unveiled the new naira notes, followed by its circulation on 15 December.

The apex bank issued a directive to commercial banks to ensure that their ATMs dispense only the banknotes. But many banks continued to defy the order.

In less than seven days to the 31 January deadline, the old naira notes are the majority currency in circulation nationwide.

Although the CBN has carried out several initiatives, including its latest cash-swap programme, the calls for extending the deadline have become too loud to ignore.
DAILY POST

Related Topics:Naira Redesign New Naira Notes

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Business

Tinubu Approves 15% Import Duty On Petrol, Diesel

Published

2 weeks ago

October 30, 2025

Editor

President Bola Tinubu has approved a 15 percent ad-valorem import duty on diesel and premium motor spirit (PMS), also known as petrol.

This was announced in a letter dated October 21, 2025, where the private secretary to the president, Damilotun Aderemi, conveyed Tinubu’s approval to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).

Tinubu gave his approval, following a request by the FIRS to apply the 15 percent duty on the cost, insurance and freight (CIF) to align import costs to domestic realities.

With the approval, the implementation of the import duty will increase a litre of petrol by an estimated N99.72 kobo.

The latest development has led to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announcing that it has begun a detailed review of the country’s three petroleum refineries, with a view to bringing them back online.

NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Bayo Ojulari, made the announcement in a post on his official X handle on Wednesday night.

According to Ojulari, one of the options being explored by the NNPCL is to search for technical equity partners to ‘high-grade or repurpose’ the facilities.

Tagged: “Update on Our Refineries”, Ojulari said: “The NNPCL continues to remain optimistic that the refineries will operate efficiently, despite current setbacks.”

It can be recalled that despite spending about $3 billion on revamping the refineries, only the 60,000 barrels per day portion of the facility worked skeletally for just a few months before packing up.

The Warri refinery has remained ineffective weeks after it was gleefully announced to have returned to production, while the one situated in Kaduna State never took off at all.

Business

NNPCL Raises Fuel Price

Published

4 weeks ago

October 13, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has increased the pump price of petrol from ₦865 to ₦992 per litre, marking a fresh hike that has sparked widespread concern among motorists and consumers .

As of the time of filing this report, the company has not released any official statement explaining the reason for the sudden adjustment.

During visits to several NNPC retail outlets, The Nation observed fuel attendants recalibrating their pumps to reflect the new price.

At NNPC filling station on Ogunusi road, Ojodu Berger, petrol attendants at the station said they were instructed to change the price to reflect the new rate N992 per litre.

However, checks at Ibafo along the Lagos /Ibadan expressway showed that NNPC outlets still displayed the old price of N875 per litre, although they were not selling to commuters.

Most of the NNPC stations were not dispensing fuel.

Business

CBN Directs Banks To Refund Failed ATM Transactions Within 48hrs

Published

1 month ago

October 11, 2025

Editor

The Central Bank of Nigeria has directed Deposit Money Banks and other financial institutions to refund customers for failed Automated Teller Machine transactions within 48 hours, in a sweeping reform aimed at protecting consumers and restoring confidence in the banking system.

The directive is contained in a draft guideline released by the apex bank on Saturday, titled “Exposure of the Draft Guidelines on the Operations of Automated Teller Machines in Nigeria.”

The document, signed by Musa I. Jimoh, Director of Payments System Policy Department, was circulated to banks, payment service providers, card schemes, and independent ATM deployers, with a call for stakeholder feedback by October 31, 2025.

Under the draft, failed “on-us” transactions, where customers use their own bank’s ATM, must be reversed instantly. If technical glitches prevent immediate reversal, the bank is required to manually refund the customer within 24 hours.

For “not-on-us” transactions, involving other banks’ ATMs, refunds must be processed within 48 hours.

“Customers must not be made to suffer for failed transactions caused by system errors or network failures,” the circular stressed.

In a significant shift, the CBN mandated banks and ATM acquirers to deploy technology that automatically reverses failed or partial transactions, removing the need for customers to lodge complaints.

Institutions holding customer funds due to failed disbursements must reconcile and return balances immediately.

According to the apex bank, these measures respond to widespread frustration over delayed refunds and poor customer service and form part of a broader effort to enhance consumer protection, improve reliability, and modernise Nigeria’s payment infrastructure in line with global standards.

The guidelines will also overhaul ATM operations nationwide. Banks and card issuers are now required to deploy at least one ATM for every 5,000 active cards, with phased targets of 30% compliance in 2026, 60% in 2027, and full compliance by 2028. Any future deployment, relocation, or decommissioning of ATMs must receive prior approval from the CBN.

To ensure safety, ATMs must be fitted with anti-skimming devices, CCTV cameras, and placed in enclosed or well-lit areas.

Machines are expected to comply with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, maintain audit logs, and display functional helpdesk contacts. At least 2% of all ATMs must feature tactile symbols for visually impaired customers.

ATMs are also required to dispense cash before returning cards, allow free PIN changes, issue receipts for all transactions except balance inquiries, display clear transaction fees, dispense only clean banknotes, and provide backup power to reduce downtime.

Downtime must not exceed 72 consecutive hours, after which operators must inform the public of the cause and expected restoration time.

The CBN will enforce compliance through regular audits, on-site inspections, and monthly reports from ATM operators detailing deployments and locations. Defaulting institutions risk sanctions, though fines were not specified.

The apex bank explained that the overhaul was necessary due to rising complaints about failed transactions, cyber fraud, and declining service quality, noting that “the goal is to build a payments system that works seamlessly for everyone, urban and rural users alike.”

Nigeria’s electronic payments landscape has grown rapidly in recent years, with 200 million cardholders and rising reliance on digital banking, but network failures, poor infrastructure, and delayed reversals have continued to undermine confidence.

The fresh guidelines, coming eight months after a revision of ATM fees, are expected to streamline service delivery, enhance transaction security, and hold banks accountable. Stakeholders are invited to submit feedback ahead of the final policy adoption, which could take effect before the end of the year.