Abuja, Nov. 24,2022 – Mr Godwin Emefiele,, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), says the apex bank will involve all the security agencies in the country in tracking the new naira notes.
He said that agencies like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission would also be involved in monitoring large withdrawals and movement of the new naira notes.
Emefiele said in Abuja on Wednesday that the amount of money that could be withdrawn from the counter would be reduced drastically, adding that bulk withdrawals would require several procedures and security checks to track use.
He said this would ensure a steady transition into a cashless economy.
“There is no economy imbued with the thinking that it has to be a cash economy; the world has moved from predominantly cash to a cashless economy. And I think Nigeria and the Central Bank of Nigeria are prepared to move towards a cashless economy. And that is why following the redesign and issuance of this note, we will insist that cashless will be nationwide.
“We will restrict the volume of cash that people can withdraw over the counter. If you need to draw large volumes of cash, you will fill out uncountable forms; we will take your data, whether it’s your BVN or NIN so that our law enforcement agencies like EFCC and ICPC can follow you and be sure that you are taking that money for a good purpose.”
He said that this move alongside the redesigned notes would ensure that the apex bank had ample control over the amount of money in circulation.
He, however, said that the new move was not targeted at anyone.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria, by law, has the mandate to reissue and redesign currency for the country, and for Nigerian people, every five to eight years.
“And I want to hope that after the event of today, the Central Bank of Nigeria can take it as part of its programmes to see that the currencies are designed or reissued every five to eight years.
“It is mainly because the central bank should be able to control the size of currency in circulation fully. That is the actual mandate of the Central Bank of Nigeria because it has implications for monetary policy management in the country.
“There is no need for anybody to think this programme is targeted at anyone. Like you heard the President said the discussion to redesign and reissue currency started early in the year.”
