President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday morning, approved the continued use of old N200 as legal tender for 60 days.
He also said the old N500 and N1000 no longer legal tender, adding they can be deposited at the CBN branches as directed by the apex bank.
In his nationwide broadcast, the president said the monetary policy of resigning the currency was aimed at reducing inflation, money in circulation as well as tackle money laundering and vote buying.
He added that since the January 31 and February 10 deadline were announced, the CBN has been able to retrieve over N2 trillion which were initially outside the banking system.
He emphatised with Nigerians on the hardship the policy has caused them and said the policy was neccessary so as to stabilize the economy.
He directed the CBN to liase with antigraft agencies to punish anyone in the financial sector sabotaging the policy.
He also urged Nigerians to vote for any candidate of their choice and promised no voter will be intimidated or harrassed as adequate security will be provided
