The latest initiative by several Deposit Money Banks to re-circulate old N500 and N1,000 notes suffered a setback when motorists, petrol stations, shopkeepers, dealers, and other types of bank clients refused the old currency.
After a Supreme Court ruling last week allowing the use of old N1,000, N500, and N200 notes as lawful money for 10 months, commercial banks decided to reissue the old notes.
Lagos and Ogun drivers
Notwithstanding the Supreme Court’s directive, gas stations and commercial buses in Lagos and Ogun states refused to accept old naira notes as payment.
Investigations revealed that some gas stations in Ogun and Lagos turned away customers’ old N500 and N1000 notes, only taking their old N200 notes, new notes, Point of Sale payments, and transfers.
Checks around the Alagbole-Akute axis of Ogun State revealed that motorists, traders and supermarkets refused to accept the old naira notes due to the confusion surrounding the status of the old currency as a valid means of exchange.