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New Naira: CBN’s Move Will Sanitize Money Markets- EFCC

Abdulrasheed Bawa, the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, has described the move by the Central Bank of Nigeria to redesign the Naira as a well considered and timely intervention to sanitize currency management in the country. 

He said it is a timely response to the challenges of currency management which has negatively impacted the country’s monetary policy and security imperatives.

The CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, speaking at a press briefing today, announced that the CBN had obtained the approval of President Buhari to redesign and issue new N200, N500 and N1000 notes that shall come into circulation by the 15th of December, 2022.

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Speaking about this, Bawa said: “The EFCC, the CBN and some other regulators in the financial sector have worked closely in the recent past to determine how best to stabilize the country’s monetary policy environment.

“It is heart-warming that the CBN has demonstrated courage in taking this bold decision which I believe will bring sanity to the currency management situation in Nigeria”, he said.

He called on operators in the Nigerian financial services sector, especially deposit money banks and bureau de change operators to work within the guidelines provided by the CBN to ensure seamless withdrawal of the old currency. 

The EFCC Boss also warned that the Commission will monitor the process to ensure that unscrupulous players do not undermine the exercise. 

He charged banks to be alive to their reporting obligations and not assist unscrupulous customers in laundering suspected proceeds of crimes through their system.

Bawa also noted that the CBN move was in line with the objectives of Money Laundering Prevention Prohibition Act 2022.

The Act, he said, criminalizes the conduct of cash transactions above a certain threshold.

He cited the Section 2 (1) of the Money Laundering Act 2022,  saying:

“No person or body corporate shall, except in a transaction through a financial institution, make or accept cash payment of a sum exceeding— (a) N5,000,000 or its equivalent, in the case of an individual ; or (b) N10,000,000 or its equivalent, in the case of a body corporate.”

He added that he is optimistic that the new currency measure would further boost Nigerians’ embrace of banking culture and encourage the acceptance of cashless transactions.

“It is therefore pertinent to issue this stern warning to Bureau de Change operators to be wary of currency hoarders who would attempt to seize this opportunity to offload the currencies they had illegally stashed away.”

Noting that currency hoarders readily made their hoard available to criminal enterprise, the EFCC boss further stated that the Commission will spare no effort to bring to book any financial services operator who runs afoul of extant laws and regulations.

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