Bank customers have lamented continued lack of the redesigned banknotes at Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and over-the-counter transactions. They said the poor circulation was not good for business. Bank customers said the limited circulation of the banknotes could put them under pressure in view of January 31, 2023 deadline set to return all old notes to the banks.

Customers lament poor circulation of new banknotes

THE NATION

Bank customers have lamented continued lack of the redesigned banknotes at Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and over-the-counter transactions. They said the poor circulation was not good for business.

Bank customers said the limited circulation of the banknotes could put them under pressure in view of January 31, 2023  deadline set to return all old notes to the banks.

Moses Adigun, a Lagos-based entrepreneur said it was nearly two weeks since the new notes began circulation, but he is yet to receive even one.

“I keep hearing that there is new banknotes in town but I have not even touched one of them. This will make it difficult to beat the January 31 deadline  for all old notes to get to the banks,” he said.
Also speaking, Michael Obinna, a provision store merchant, said he has only received N1,000 note from one customer.

“I have only received N1,000 note from a customer who came just yesterday. I think the circulation of the new notes is very poor,” he said.

An economist, Tope Fasua, gave another view to the scarcity of the new bank notes.

He said the scarcity of the banknotes could be a deliberate policy plan by the Central Bank of Nigeria to strengthen the naira.

He said: “People have speculated that the CBN will not print all the N3.2 trillion it is taking out of circulation and that makes sense. Scarcity of naira at some point may lead to people changing their dollars back into naira cash just to live their normal lives, thus strengthening the naira”.

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