With just three days left to the January 31 deadline for the old N1,000, N500 and N200 notes get closer, bank customers are beginning to avoid collecting old notes at the Automated Teller Machines, ATMs.
This is as most traders, commercial transporters, motorcyclists and business owners have commenced rejection of the old N1,000, N500 and N200 notes.
It was gathered over the course of the week that in some banks in Osogbo, customers opted to queue at ATMs that dispensed the newly designed Naira notes, abandoning those with old notes.
Also, the apprehension among Nigerians is making some Point Of Sales (POS) operators to reject the collection of old notes as they also give new notes to their customers.
The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, under Godwin Emefiele, had insisted in 2022 that the deadline to mop up all old notes remain unchanged.
The apex bank, in its explanation, said the old notes will seize to be legal tender by the end of January, 2023.
A microfinance banker, Abimbola Oyekale, expressed dissatisfaction over the insufficiency of the new notes in circulation.
”Despite being a person who collects money and give it out every day, I hardly see the new notes.
“Our customers are skeptical of what will happen at the end of January,” she said.
Adeyemi Israel confirmed that some traders and business owners were beginning to reject the old Naira notes.
While lamenting that the January 31 deadline was just to subject the masses to hardship, he urged the CBN to roll out enough of the newly designed notes.
He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the shortage of the currency in circulation.
However, the CBN has directed all banks to continue collecting the old notes until the day of the deadline.
