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| Naira notes used for Illustration |
The Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) decision to redesign some naira notes will accelerate the dollarization of the Nigerian economy, according to trade and investment expert Ikenna Nwosu.
Hours after CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele revealed that the apex bank would begin issuing the redesigned 200, 500, and 1000 naira notes on December 15, 2022, the expert appeared on a Channels TV programme on Thursday.
Nwosu admitted that while the CBN's action will help bring back a significant amount of money into the system, not all money that has been hidden away will be retrieved.
“Why am I saying they may not get all the money in, but I believe they will get a lot in? It is because politicians will start using the naira to buy dollars; they will be afraid to pay the cash. So, there will be increased dollarization of the economy. They won’t buy pounds because pounds will soon be changed because there is a new king.
“So, there is going to be dollarization and that has national security implication again…that is going to affect impact on inflation,” he said.
Nwosu, who is the Chief Executive Officer Mooregate Limited, Investment Advisory, said there has to be a collaborative effort from all stakeholders including the Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Nigeria Police Force to address the heightened dollarization possibility.