Currency outside banks rose to N2.26trn at the end of June 2023; this is according to the latest figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
According to figures from the CBN, the currency outside banks rose by 185.68 per cent (N1.47trn) between January 2023 (N792.18bn) and June 2023 (N2.26tn).
Also, currency in circulation in the country rose by 87.05 per cent (N1.21tn) from N1.39trn in January 2023 to N2.6tn in June 2023.
It had earlier dipped by 235.03% to N982.09bn at the end of February from N3.29trn at the end of October 2022, on the back of the naira redesign policy of the CBN.
Figures obtained from the CBN revealed that N2.3trn was mopped up from circulation during the period under review.
“Currency-in-circulation is defined as currency outside the vaults of the central bank; that is, all legal tender currencies in the hands of the public and in the vaults of the Deposit Money Banks,” according to CBN.
The CBN revealed that it employed the ‘accounting/statistical/withdrawals and deposits approach’ to compute the currency in circulation in Nigeria.
Currency in circulation in Nigeria has been on the rise since the Supreme Court ruled against the new Naira notes policy introduced by the apex bank in late 2022. The policy was largely criticised by most Nigerians due to its poor implementation and the spate of scarcity it created across several cities in the country.
The apex bank had stated that the policy was introduced to curb excess money supply, especially physical cash which it claimed contributed to inflation.
