Nigeria’s Currency-in-Circulation Soars N201.48bn YoY In April- CBN

Latest data published on the website of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Tuesday shows that the nation’s continues to be awash with liquidity as measured by currency-in-circulation, which jumped rose by N5.478bn or 0.25% to N2.158tr as at April 30, 2019.
According to the figures on the CBN website, currency-in-circulation, two months after the end of the 2019 general elections across the country stood at N2.158tr, up from N2.153tr at the end of the prior month.

The sustained rise may have led to the decision announced recently by the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele to relaunch the policy and even effect across the country, years after he suspended it to allow for penetration of financial inclusion across the country.
Year-on-year, the figure soared by N201.479bn or 10.29% from N1.957tr on April 30, 2018; while on a year-to-date basis, the currency-in-circulation within Nigeria, however, dropped by N171.008bn or 7.34%, compared to the N2.329tr reported for December-end, 2018. The December level remains the peak ever since.
Over the past 12 months also, the lowest quantum of currency-in-circulation is the N1.824tr reported by the CBN on July 31, 2018, it has however remained in the region of N2.1tr since November 2018, which remains the lowest since then.

The policy was introduced seven years as an initiative of the Bankers’ Committee and CBN, under Malam Sanusi Lamido, the then Governor (now Emir Mohammad Sanusi of Kano) in 2012.
The cashless policy was part of efforts to support the use of electronic payment channels, reduce service cost, increase tax collection, reduce leakages and enhance greater financial inclusion while engendering economic growth.

Under the policy, which pilot phase took off in Lagos and then five states with major commercial centres of Anambra, Abia, Rivers, Kano and Ogun, as well as Abuja, the Bankers’ Committee and apex bank sought to migrate payments to electronic channels, while penalizing customers for deposits and withdrawals above a particular threshold.

The policy was also meant to discourage the circulation of huge sums of money outside the banking system and reduce the huge currency management cost on the economy.
However, the CBN, perhaps for a lack of a political will has failed to implement punitive measures capable of reducing huge cash reliance across the country, especially among black market currency operators in strategic locations across major commercial centres in the country.

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