CBN cash lockdown: Different strokes for different folks

It is not surprising that one of the most talked about issues in Nigeria today is the complement of measures adopted by the Central Bank of   Nigeria (CBN) in its bid to restructure the country’s monetary system, pursuant to implementing its cashless policy for Nigeria. Citing the extreme economic anomaly of 85% of the […]

It is not surprising that one of the most talked about issues in Nigeria today is the complement of measures adopted by the Central Bank of   Nigeria (CBN) in its bid to restructure the country’s monetary system, pursuant to implementing its cashless policy for Nigeria. Citing the extreme economic anomaly of 85% of the country’s currency in circulation flowing outside the banking system, the CBN had launched a complement of drastic measures which are manifesting in phases. With the first salvo being the initiative of changing the notes with redesigned ones which shall enter circulation on January 9 2023, it instructed

Nigerians to commence depositing the old notes. 

Apparently satisfied with that phase of the exercise, the apex bank last week issued a fresh set of conditions aimed solely at restricting the use of cash in daily transactions by Nigerians – a cash lock-down by another name. Among the new regulations is the pegging of an individual’s cash withdrawal at not more than N20,000.00 a day, and a maximum of N100,000.00 a week. Violations of this regulation shall attract a fine of 5% of the sum withdrawn.  For corporate bodies the weekly limit is N500,000.00 while the fine for violation shall be 10% of the sum withdrawn.

According to the Governor of the CBN Godwin Emiefele, the measures are intended to achieve among other goals, two main objectives – namely to deepen the payment system in the country and promote the cashless economy. To be added to his reasons are the ever-increasing risk of robberies of cash either in transit or in safe custody, miscounting, counterfeiting, risk of cash incentive to criminal conduct and the ever-increasing cost of producing currency notes. Yet for some   others too, the measures will hopefully tame the craze for vote buying during the forthcoming general elections where the power of cash had been factored in by politicians for determining electoral victories. Just as well is also the faint hope that kidnappers may be inclined to adjust their gaze over the value of ransom payments which they will demand from victims knowing the fresh hurdles that are attached to securing cash from banks.  

Why Edo smallholder farmers can’t access inputs, interventions

Fraudsters now find easy targets in gullible farmers

However, to assume that all Nigerians are agreed on the steps by the CBN is to misread their minds as most are actually at sea over the merits or otherwise of the apex bank’s enterprise.  Hence for most Nigerians their concern is not on the semantics over whatever the CBN is concocting but that their invaluable money remains intact for their daily transactions.  

Hence, seen from the perspective of caution in respect of national interest the CBN’s position is ordinarily difficult to fault. Among the powers granted the institution by both the Banks and other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA), as well as the Central Bank Establishment Act of 2007, is the prerogative of initiating actions aimed at effective management of the country’s monetary system of which the currency is the mainstay Hence the CBN seems to be remain unchallengeable on its turf as far as the currency initiatives are concerned.

However, trending developments indicate that, it may not be a smooth sail for the apex bank, as dissenting voices have arisen especially in the National Assembly whereby the institution has invited the CBN governor to appear before it on December 18th 2022. Apparently smarting from that invitation by the National Assembly, Emefiele had rushed to see vacating President Muhamadu Buhari in Daura Katsina State last week. Ostensibly bolstered by Buhari’s assurance of support in the currency reform exercise, Emefiele came out of consulting Buhari to dare whoever cares to listen that there is no going back on the reform measures, except for a few adjustments in quantum of withdrawals and any other area.     

Nevertheless, with respect to the ongoing currency reform exercise, the outcry by the National Assembly should not be seen as baseless by the apex bank, as these legislators legitimately represent constituents who may have reached out to them in respect pains from the exercise.  For the apex bank to do otherwise, may be to unwittingly hurt those it intended to protect in the first place – the poorer masses, as its measures are clearly not enjoying total support. 

And the reason for this situation borders on several factors including the environment as well as the technical endowments of the individual citizen. For instance, it is a known fact that the entire exercise of cashless operation depends on electronic financial operations in which the country’s endowments are still suspect. Hence, welcome as the progression into that cashless terrain may be, it still needs to be interrogated how the apex bank will execute it flawlessly without significant challenges to a wide cross section of the citizenry.

 Secondly is the ever-present issue of epileptic power supply that has literally defied every government in Nigeria as an intractable dilemma. Accompanying it is the less than robust ICT endowment of the wider cross section of the citizenry especially the elderly who are still of the ‘old school’ in common Nigerian street parlance.  

In defence of the strategy of the apex bank, Emefiele had disclosed that the cashless economy initiative enjoys adequate preparation by the CBN, as the institution had commenced the exercise since 2012 even   before his appointment on March 6, 2014. He further imputed that during these 10 years the CBN had built critical capacity towards ensuring that the country was ready for the ongoing full-blown take-off of the policy. 

 In the light of the forthcoming meeting between CBN and the National Assembly Nigerians look forward to an open-minded parle, as the issue borders on their collective money whose importance is underscored by the title of one of the greatest novels by British novelist James Hadley Chase –‘What is better than money?’