As the Christmas season approaches, some areas in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are experiencing a shortage of Naira currency.

On Thursday, at least seven commercial banks in the AYA area of Abuja were unable to dispense cash. A reporter from Vistanaij Media visited these ATMs and found that withdrawals were not possible, a situation that has persisted for about a week.

However, it was observed that there were a significant number of Point of Sales (POS) operators gathered in front of these banks, conducting brisk business.

One of the POS operators, who identified himself as Samuel, expressed his frustration over the ATMs’ failure to dispense cash as expected. He mentioned that cash availability was limited to specific hours of the day.

“There has been a scarcity of Naira, especially since December started. Perhaps it’s because we are approaching the holiday season, but only the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) can provide an explanation for this new scarcity,” Samuel lamented.

This situation occurs despite the directive from the CBN that both the old and redesigned versions of Naira notes remain legal tender in Nigeria. The Supreme Court also granted the federal government’s request to lift the December 31 deadline for the usage of N200, N500, and N1,000 notes.

In response to the court’s judgment, the CBN clarified that all banknotes issued by the central bank, including the old and redesigned versions, will continue to be accepted as legal tender indefinitely, as stated in Section 20(5) of the CBN Act 2007.