The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, has reminded Nigerians that spraying, hawking, mutilating, and counterfeiting the naira remain banned.
Cardoso, represented by the Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Hakama Sidi Ali, gave the warning on Thursday during the CBN Fair held in Kaduna.
“I urge everyone here to rely only on information disseminated through verifiable official channels of the Central Bank of Nigeria,” Cardoso said. “I also encourage you to respect and keep the naira clean. Do not spray, hawk, mutilate or counterfeit the naira. It is our critical national symbol.”
The CBN Fair, themed “Driving Alternative Payment Channels as Tools for Financial Inclusion, Growth and Accelerated Economic Development,” was designed to engage the public on policies that drive economic growth and support small and medium-sized enterprises.
Cardoso explained that the Bank’s reforms were already improving the economy. He highlighted recent steps such as clearing over $7 billion in verified foreign exchange forwards to restore confidence, unifying exchange rates to cut arbitrage, and recapitalising banks to make them stronger in line with Nigeria’s $1 trillion economy target.
He also mentioned the rollout of new initiatives like the Non-Resident BVN for Nigerians abroad, the Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028 to expand digital services, and the Unified Complaints Tracking System with the USSD code *959# to help customers verify licensed institutions and lodge complaints more easily.
“These reforms are already bringing results such as more foreign investment inflows, better trade balances, and wider financial inclusion,” the CBN governor said.
Earlier, the Kaduna Branch Controller of the CBN, Ahmad Dalhatu, said the fair was one of the Bank’s key enlightenment programmes.
“It serves as a platform to deepen financial literacy, promote transparency, and strengthen trust between the Bank and the Nigerian people,” Dalhatu said. “The fair enables us not only to explain our policies but also to listen to the public’s concerns and feedback.”
