As part of a concerted effort to enable the Naira circulation, the Central Bank of Nigeria ordered all commercial banks to be open for business on Saturdays and Sundays.

As part of a concerted effort to enable the Naira circulation, the Central Bank of Nigeria ordered all commercial banks to be open for business on Saturdays and Sundays.

To alleviate the misery that millions of Nigerians are experiencing due to the absence of the naira, it also verified the evacuation of banknotes from its vaults to commercial banks nationwide.

The CBN began distributing old naira notes to banks on Thursday as part of measures to end the country's currency shortage following a meeting between the Central Banks' Governor and the chief executive officers of the banks on Wednesday. 

In addition, plans to monitor bank compliance through a team of CBN officials were said to have been finalized to ensure effective disbursement of the old currencies.

On Thursday, representatives from the CBN met with members of the Nigeria Labour Congress at the Labour House in Abuja regarding the upcoming protest against the shortage of naira notes.

The union announced that it would continue the nationwide strike the following Wednesday until the situation in the country returned to normal. The association's president, Joe Ajaero, lamented that everything had stayed the same despite the Supreme Court's ruling that the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes would remain legal tender until December 31, 2023.

However, a statement from the CBN's acting director of corporate communications, Isa AbdulMumin, claims that the commercial banks had received a large sum of money in various denominations to conduct physical operations in the banking halls over the weekends and remitting to their respective customers.

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The CBN required all banks to load their ATMs and do physical activities in the banking halls during weekends. In addition, part of the release stated that the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, would personally head teams to monitor the compliance level of the banks in various locations throughout the country.

As a result, certain deposit money banks informed their clients on Friday that they would be open for cash deposits and withdrawals on Saturday and Sunday.

Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank,  Stanbic IBTC, and Union Bank announced on Friday that their branches would open from 9 am to 4 pm in separate tweets sent through their Twitter accounts.

According to an email sent by Sterling Bank to one of our correspondents on Friday, their branches will be open for cash withdrawals and deposits on Saturday, March 25, and Sunday, March 26, between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm. In addition, historical notes are still valid forms of payment. 

Old notes can now be deposited without using the CBN interface. However, deposit money bank personnel lamented on Friday that the apex bank still needed to distribute the old naira notes adequately. 

The employees, who work for the National Union of Banks, Insurance, and Financial Institutions Employees and the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Financial and Insurance Institutions, claimed that the bank's efforts to meet the needs of their clients by enhancing access to more cash in circulation, increasing withdrawals, and reducing crowds of clients on the banks' property were being hampered by the shortage of money.

In addition, they pledged to participate in the strike the Nigeria Labour Congress had organized for the following Wednesday if nothing changed. Anthony Abakpa, president of the National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institution Employees, said deposit money banks would not delay serving their customers if they had enough cash in hand in an interview with Saturday PUNCH on Friday.

"Some banks paid N5,000, N10,000, or N20,000 (to consumers) across the counter in the last three weeks, but it's not a regular occurrence. So, therefore, they (the CBN) should make it (cash) available so that people will be satisfied if banks can pay N20,000 across the counter.

"It (the money) is still insufficient. We will be obliged to strike if nothing is done. We have your complete and utter support," Abakpa said. 

According to Soji Oluwole, president of the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance, and Financial Institutions, the top bank must release cash to the banks consistently for its new direction to be effective.

"I heard what was released to banks in Lagos and Abuja," Oluwole stated. However, the reality is that more than what was released will be required.

"The difficulties we currently confront won't disappear in a day or two. The first justification is the public's capacity to believe in the system. For the possibility that the crisis would recur, everyone wants to grab as much as possible.

"If there is availability, we will likely observe a gradual fade-off next week or the week after. "ASSBIFI is a member of the Trade Union Congress, and our associate union, NUBIFIE, is a member of the National Labor Congress. So, undoubtedly, an NLC move will have an overall, industry-wide impact. So, although we still need to, we'll follow TUC's instructions.