New Naira: POS Agents Who Charge Above N200 Will Be Jailed – CBN Gov. Godwin Emefiele

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele on Tuesday, said Point of Sale (POS) agents who charge above N200 for the apex bank cash swap programme will be arrested and jailed when caught.

CBN Gov. Godwin Emefiele Reacts To POS Agents Who Charge Above N200

Godwin Emefiele stated this during a visit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to discuss the monetary and currency redesign policy of the bank.

Godwin Emefiele said, “The situation is substantially calming down since the commencement of over-the-counter payments to complement ATM disbursements and the use of super-agents.

“There is, therefore, no need to consider any shift from the deadline of February 10.”

Recall that the Supreme Court had stopped the Federal Government from implementing the February 10 deadline for the currency swap.

Led by Justice John Okoro, the seven-man panel of the apex court, in its unanimous ruling, granted an interim injunction restraining the Federal Government, the Central Bank of Nigeria, and commercial banks from implementing the Friday terminal date for the old naira notes.

Also, the International Monetary Fund, a few days ago, counselled the CBN to extend the February 10 deadline for swapping old naira notes with the redesigned ones.

The IMF gave the counsel in the wake of the challenges faced by Nigerians across the country over the banknote swap process.

The IMF said in a statement, “In light of hardships caused by disruptions to trade and payments due to the shortage of new banknotes available to the public, in spite of measures introduced by the CBN to mitigate the challenges in the banknote swap process, the IMF encourages the CBN to consider extending the deadline, should problems persist in the next few days leading up to the February 10, 2023 deadline.”

In other news, Kanyi Daily reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday, raised the alarm about the activities of an amorphous group of so-called Civil Society Organizations who have recently embarked on a campaign of street protests, calling for the removal of the Chairman of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa.

Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja, the EFCC Spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, said the activities of the group were aimed at discrediting the EFCC Chairman and inciting the public against the commission.