Some enraged youths have set fire to commercial banks in three Nigerian cities due to a lack of new 200, 500, and 1000 naira notes.
The youth destroyed bank ATMs and blocked some city streets to protest cash shortages just days before the country’s general elections.
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Nigeria has been dealing with a cash shortage since the central bank began exchanging old bills of the local naira currency for new ones, resulting in a shortage of banknotes.
Due to a scarcity of new notes, banks have limited access to cash for withdrawals, and some businesses refuse to accept old naira, causing long lines, angering customers, and disrupting business.
“There were pockets of protest this morning by some aggrieved bank customers. Major roads were blocked while banks, shops and other businesses were shut. The protesters made bonfires of used tires to disrupt traffic and movements”, sources reveal.
