On Wednesday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recommended Nigerians to create savings accounts and swap their old naira notes at Point of Sale (PoS) machines.
This is happening as Nigerians continue to complain about the high fees PoS operators around the nation impose (at least 10% for each dollar withdrawn).
The guidance was given by Rasheedat Mangunu, the bank’s director of protection, during the monitoring operation of a few PoS super-agents in Ilorin.
To facilitate the naira cash swap on January 25, the CBN claimed to have provided PoS to 30,000 super-agents along with a cash payment of N500,000 a piece.
Ms. Mangunu claimed that the money swap had advanced during the previous week as a result of their enlightenment discussions with licenced PoS agents.
She urged the people of Kwara, particularly those who lived in remote regions, to use the super-agents wisely and open bank accounts with minimum hassle.
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“With merely a National Identity Card, people can open a bank account through the PoS super-agents and stress-free save their old money in their accounts.
She stated, “Your money will be protected in your various bank accounts and our super-agents will deposit all your old Naira notes without charging you anything.”
Sadiq AbdulRasheed, a user, reported that he was able to swap his old naira notes without paying any fees at one of the PoS centres he visited in the Osere neighbourhood of Ilorin.
However, many locals in Isale Bani, a district of Ilorin near Alore, claimed that they couldn’t swap their notes since there weren’t any new ones available.
Saheed AbdulRazaq, an agent stationed nearby, revealed that he had been exchanging notes with the locals since last week but had been unable to satisfy their demands.
“I began exchanging the notes with the amount of N500,000 handed to me by CBN last week and have continued since then, but everyone in the region is pleading for more brand-new notes,” the author said.
They need more new notes than I can withdraw from the bank at this time. I beg CBN to provide commercial banks more instructions so they can withdraw more money, the man remarked.
In response, Ms. Mangunu gave the assurance that all financial institutions would be involved and that all agents would receive sufficient funding for their business needs.
She claimed that sufficient funds had been allocated to all Ilorin banking institutions, so individuals could relax knowing that they would have access to their money.
(NAN)