About three weeks had passed since the new laws were introduced by President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) at the Federal Executive Council meeting held in Aso Rock Villa.

The revised N200, N500, and N1,000 notes were unveiled by the President.

Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, had previously stated in October that the top bank will issue new naira notes by December 15, 2022.

He also said that on January 31, 2023, the old notes would no longer be accepted as money.

Emefiele emphasized that the redesign of the naira notes would aid in reducing ransom payments to terrorists and kidnappers as well as counterfeit notes.

The head of the CBN said it was alarming that Nigerians were hoarding 85% of the entire amount of money in circulation.

He added that out of the about N3.3 trillion in circulation, nearly N2.75 trillion were outside the banking sector and that the redesign of the local currency will assist mop up the currency outside the banking sector.

Top commercial bank executives told our correspondent on Wednesday that they had received the new notes from the CBN a few days prior and that their customers will start receiving the redesigned money on Thursday (today).

"About two days ago, the cash (new notes) arrived. The money has been sent from our central office to numerous regional offices across the nation. My branch will go to a nearby office to take up our allocation." By Thursday, we'll begin distributing the new notes to our clients "based on information provided on Wednesday by a senior representative of a commercial bank who spoke to one of our correspondents under the condition of anonymity since he was not permitted to do so.

The new notes had arrived, according to numerous banking sources, and were being stored in their vaults.

They stated that starting on Thursday, the new notes would be distributed to consumers in the banking halls.

The new notes have arrived, and consumers will be able to purchase them starting tomorrow (Thursday), according to a Polaris Bank representative who asked to remain anonymous.

Also, a manager at First Bank Plc who was not licensed to talk on the topic said, "The CBN money are currently in our possession. Although it arrived a few days ago, users will have access to it starting tomorrow (Thursday)."

Some bank executives, however, complained that the CBN's distribution of fresh notes to the various banks was insufficient.

They claim that because the number of the new notes still being made accessible is so minimal, the majority of OTC payments will still need to be made using the old notes.

In a statement made by an FCMB representative "We are only supplied a small portion of what we actually require. For instance, my branch has access to less than N1m. When compared to what we need, this is little. However, I think it will get worse over time."

Several financial sources have reported that they had begun reprogramming their ATMs to recognize the new naira notes.

When asked about the state of the economy, the CEO of a major bank responded, "The economy is doing well, but there are still challenges."

The overall amount to be released into circulation may not be as much as the amount already in circulation, according to CBN data.

Under the condition of anonymity, a senior CBN official stated that the organization intended to encourage electronic payments rather than cash transactions.

He asserts that the CBN won't be printing many of the new notes.

The CBN has been giving the new naira notes to the banks, but it doesn't want to give out a lot of them because it wants to increase electronic payments, he added.

"Don't anticipate that the new notes will be used extensively in the economy."

People should use the various electronic avenues available."

They anticipate Emefiele

If nothing unexpected changes, the House of Representatives will question Emefiele about the new cash withdrawal limits policy, which limits OTC payments for individuals and businesses to N100,000 and N500,000, respectively, on Thursday (today).

In a document outlining the new policy, the CBN stated that third-party checks valued at more than N50,000 would no longer be eligible for OTC payment, although the current clearing check limitations of N10 million would still apply.

The circular further instructed banks to limit ATM withdrawals to N20,000 per day and to load only N200 and smaller denominations onto their machines. Additionally, PoS terminal withdrawals were restricted to N20,000 per day.

The CBN reiterated last Wednesday that PoS operators could seek for a waiver. The regulation, which will go into force on January 9, 2023, has drawn criticism.

The CBN governor was called before the House last Thursday to discuss the policy.

On Wednesday, one of our correspondents was informed by House of Representatives sources that Emefiele was scheduled to appear in the chamber.

Senate supports CBN

The Senate requested the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to review the new rule regarding the amount of cash that can be withdrawn at once on Wednesday.

The Committee on Banking, Insurance, and Other Financial Institutions was also instructed to vigorously monitor the central bank.

Sen. Uba Sani (APC Kaduna Central), the chairman of the committee, made the case in the report that the CBN's proposed cash withdrawal limits policy was well thought out for the transformation of the country's economy. He noted that the action is consistent with the apex bank's mandate as outlined in Sections 2(d) and 47 of its current Act.