Lawmakers shocked as CBN deputy governor claims she's not aware of quantity of new naira notes released

Barely seven days after the new naira notes were released, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that it is not sure of the number of notes in circulation.

Appearing before members of the House of Representatives, the deputy governor of the CBN in charge of Financial Stability, Aisha Ahmad, said she is not aware of the number of new notes printed and released into circulation between Thursday, December 15 and Tuesday, December 22.

Daily Trust reports that Ahmad's response comes as she represents the governor of the apex bank, Godwin Emefiele, who was expected to appear before the lawmakers to make some clarification on the new CBN's cash withdrawal limits.

The lawmakers of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, December 21, resolved that a deputy governor of the apex bank represents Emefiele who is outside the country to attend to health issues.

One of the lawmakers, Sada Soli, while throwing questions to the deputy governor raised concerns over the non-availability of the new notes days after their release to the public.

Soli had requested that the deputy governor of the apex bank disclose the quantities of new notes printed and released to the public through retail banks.

But responding to the question, the CBN deputy governor said she does not know the quantities of notes printed by the apex bank.

The Central Bank of Nigeria on Tuesday, December 20, 2022, released security features of the new naira notes.
According to the apex bank, it is bound by its commitment to protecting Nigerians from fraudsters and scammers.

The security features are available in the redesigned N200, N500 and N1,000 notes.

Legit.ng reported that On Thursday, December 15, 2022, the new naira notes officially went into circulation as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) makes good on its promise of introducing the new banknotes.

Many Nigerians rushed to the various banks in the country with the hopes of cashing the new notes but were largely disappointed.'

Despite the mixed reactions that trailed the new notes, many banks complained of an inadequate supply.