During the height of the naira redesign crisis in early 2023, a viral post on Facebook and WhatsApp claimed that the Supreme Court of Nigeria had issued a fresh directive extending the validity of the old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes until late 2024. This report emerged just as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was struggling with the circulation of the newly designed notes, causing widespread confusion among traders and small business owners.
The Supreme Court did indeed intervene in the matter, but the viral report significantly exaggerated the timeline. In its judgment delivered on March 3, 2023, the apex court ruled that the old notes must remain in circulation alongside the new ones until December 31, 2023. There was never any legal pronouncement extending their use into 2024 at that time. The court’s decision was intended to alleviate the severe cash crunch that had crippled many parts of the informal economy during the election period.
Financial analysts warned that the spread of the “2024 extension” fake news was leading some merchants to stop accepting the new notes altogether, under the false impression that they had another year to dispose of their old currency. The CBN eventually complied with the court order, but the misinformation regarding a longer extension persisted throughout the year. Citizens are reminded that official monetary policy changes are communicated by the CBN Governor and that judicial rulings on currency have specific, documented expiration dates.
