CBN Threatens To Arrest, Jail PoS Agents Charging Above N200, Insists Feb 10 As Deadline For Old Notes

• CBN has threatened to arrest and jail POS agents charging above N200 cash withdrawals.

THE NATION REPORTERS reports that the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, has threatened to arrest and jail POS agents charging above N200 cash withdrawals.

Emefiele said this during a visit, on Tuesday, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to discuss the monetary and currency redesign policy of the bank.

The CBN governor said that there was no need to shift the February 10, 2023 deadline.

He said, “The situation is substantially calming down since the commencement of over-the-counter payments to complement ATM disbursements and the use of super-agents.

“There is, therefore, no need to consider any shift from the deadline of February 12.”

Recall that the Supreme Court had earlier restrained the Federal Government from implementing the February 12 deadline for the currency swap.

A seven-man panel of the apex court led by Justice John Okoro, in a unanimous ruling, granted an interim injunction restraining the Federal Government, the Central Bank of Nigeria and commercial banks from implementing the Friday terminal date for the old naira notes.

However, the CBN governor insisted that there was no need to shift the deadline.

He also said that Point of Sale agents who charge above N200 for cash swap will be arrested and jailed when caught.

The CBN governor further said that the PoS operators can come to the CBN to be compensated for any extra cost incurred in getting the new notes rather than charging a higher fee on customers.