President Bola Tinubu has said his administration will review the naira redesign policy.
Gatekeepers News reports that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had in October 2022, announced the redesign of N200, N500, and N1000. The apex bank had advised customers to deposit their old notes before January 31, 2023.
Immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari later approved the extension of the phase-out following several complaints that many Nigerians could not access the new naira notes.
Supreme Court, however in March 2023, ordered that old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes remain in circulation till December 31, 2023.
On Monday, the Tinubu during his inaugural speech as president, assured that his administration will treat both old and new currencies as legal tender.
“Whatever merits it had in concept, the currency swap was too harshly applied by the CBN given the number of unbanked Nigerians,” Tinubu said.
“The policy shall be reviewed. In the meantime, my administration will treat both currencies as legal tender.”
Tinubu also noted that the current 18.5 percent interest rate of the CBN is “too high”, describing it as “anti-people” and “anti-business”.
“Monetary policy needs thorough house cleaning. The Central Bank must work towards a unified exchange rate. This will direct funds away from arbitrage into meaningful investment in the plant, equipment and jobs that power the real economy,” Tinubu said.
“Interest rates need to be reduced to increase investment and consumer purchasing in ways that sustain the economy at a higher level.”
