The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a stern warning to banks and authorized forex dealers against the rejection of old series and lower denominations of United States dollar notes.
This directive was staed in a circular dated June 27, signed by Solaja Olayemi, the acting director of the currency operations department.
The circular, now available on the CBN’s official website, aims to curb the continued refusal of these currencies by regulated entities in Nigeria.
The CBN stated that this warning follows its consumer market intelligence findings, which revealed ongoing issues with banks and other authorized forex dealers rejecting older and lower denomination dollar bills. The apex bank reminded all parties that the directive issued on April 9, 2021, under reference COD/DIR/INT/CIR/001/002, remains in effect and must be strictly followed.
“For the avoidance of doubt and further guidance on the circular, the content is hereby reissued as follows for strict compliance: All Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and authorized forex dealers should henceforth accept both old series and lower denominations of United States Dollars that are legal tender for deposit from their customers.
The CBN will not hesitate to sanction any DMB or authorized forex dealers who refuse to accept old series/lower denominations of US Dollar bills from their customers,” the circular stated.
CBN also cautioned against defacing or stamping US Dollar banknotes, as such notes often fail authentication tests during processing and sorting.
