The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)has reacted to reports making the rounds that it’s planning to re-denominate the naira.
Messages circulating on social media and instant messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook claim that the CBN plans to introduce a new naira policy that will see the naira being redenominated.
However, the Apex Bank yesterday said,there was no iota of truth in the messages, describing it as fake.
It urged members of the public to disregard the message.
The CBN, in 2007, under the governorship of Professor Chukwuma Soludo had broached the idea of re-denominating the naira but the president at the time, Olusegun Obasanjo, kicked against the policy.
Currency redenomination is the process where a new unit of money replaces the old unit with a certain ratio. It is achieved by removing zeros from a Currency or moving some decimal points to the left, with the aim of correcting perceived misalignment in the currency and pricing structure, and enhancing the credibility of the local currency.
Some online reports had claimed that the apex bank planned to redenominate the currency such that $1 will equal N1.25 by November 2023.
The report had claimed, “The name of the national currency will still be the Naira. However, during the transition period, the existing Naira will be referred to as the “Old Naira”, and the new one to be called the ‘New Naira.
“After the transition period, the word ‘New’ may be dropped. For example, the following equivalents will obtain as we re-denominate: 50 kobo Half kobo; N1 = 1 Kobo Coin; N2 = 2 kobo coin; N5 = 5 kobo coin; N10 = 10 kobo coin; N20 = 20 kobo coin; N50 = 50 kobo coin or note; N100 = N 1 note; N200 = N2 note; N500 = N5 note; N1,000 = N10 note and the N2,000 = N20 note.”
But the CBN labeled the report as “fake news” adding that there are no such plans to redenominate the currency.
The apex bank said, “The Central Bank of Nigeria would like to bring to your attention that the attached message currently circulating on social media is false and should be disregarded.”
The report claimed that the CBN was planning to execute the policy to drive down prices amidst the country’s rising inflation
The CBN under the Acting Governor, Folashodun Shonubi on June 14 2023, reintroduced the ‘Willing buyer, willing seller’ foreign exchange model and floated the currency.
The apex bank also unified the forex market along the Investors’ and Exporters’ Forex window now the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market
