CBN warns banks, FX dealers against rejecting old, lower dollar bill denominations in Nigeria 

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned banks and money changers to accept old and small US dollar bills from customers.

This rule comes because many people have said that banks and money changers are not taking these kinds of dollars.

On June 27, 2024, Solaja Mohammed-J Olayemi, a boss at CBN, sent a letter reminding everyone of this rule.

The new letter talks about an old rule from April 9, 2021, which said banks should not pick and choose which dollar bills to accept. They must take all legal US dollar bills.

The letter said: “Our checks showed that some banks and money changers are still not accepting old or small US dollar bills.

“Remember that the rule from April 9, 2021, is still in place. You must follow it.”

CBN might punish rule-breakers

All banks and money changers now have to take both old and small US dollar bills. This will help customers who have these bills.

CBN says they will punish any bank or money changer that doesn’t follow this rule. This is to make sure everyone handles US dollars the same way.

Don’t damage US dollar bills

The letter also tells money changers to stop writing on or stamping US dollar bills. Damaged bills can fail tests that check if the money is real.

The letter ends by asking everyone to follow the rules right away.

What you should know

In 2021, CBN told banks and money changers to accept old and small US dollar bills. If they didn’t, they would be punished.

This came after many people said banks and money changers were refusing these kinds of dollars.