Economy

How To Identify Fake Naira Notes

Published

10 years ago

04/11/2016

fake-naira-notes

Con men cannot produce a real Naira note. That’s a fact. Even if they can, they can’t produce real note without bloating overhead cost. In view of this, there are always obvious differences between a real Naira note and its counterfeit.

These differences are not hidden; they are there only if you look well enough, even for an untrained eye.

You should also avail yourself of the fact that the use of counterfeits is punishable under the Nigerian constitution whether you’re aware or note because “ignorance is not an excuse in the court of law.”

Taking advantage of the marked differences between real and counterfeit Naira notes, I’m going to list ways you can identity counterfeits.

Through mercury bulbs

In the real paper Naira notes, there are some texts that are not visible to the unclad eye; they are only visible through the rays from a mercury bulb. So, to verify the authenticity of a Naira note, bring the said note in contact with rays from a mercury bulb. If it’s real, you’ll see a greenish-yellow glow of the note’s denomination across it. For example if it’s a ₦1000 note, you’ll see a glowing 1000 (in numbers) written across the note and smaller 1000 written on specific spots on it. The same goes for other paper denominations.

If the money is in a stack or bundle and you want to test for counterfeits, arrange the monies (it should be the same denomination all-through) properly (i.e. the front of each note in the bundle in contact with the back of the next note and top to top and bottom to bottom) and subject a side of it to rays from the mercury lamp, the greenish-yellow glow should be visible on the first and last note in the bundle if no counterfeit(s) is hiding in it. In the single note and the bundle (if properly arranged), absence of this greenish-yellow glow means the note or a note in the bundle is fake.

Sorry, I couldn’t get you the picture but the glow is very visible. Make sure to switch-off other light sources so as not to hamper the result. While mercury bulb is available at shops where electrical materials are sold, this method is preferable for business owners or people who handle bulk cash.

Through water or other liquids

The colours used in printing counterfeits are soluble in water and some other liquids while for real money are not. To know a fake Naira note, wet the suspected money or a part of it with water or any other liquid—I have only tried water and petrol—and scrub the wet part with your thumb. Counterfeits will wash-off their colours as you do this but real will not. Do you notice the way the colours of an artwork painted with water-colours wash-off when water touches it? That’s the kind of wash-off I mean.

Through the ribbons

On every paper money on the Naira is a thin silvery ribbon running from the top to the bottom of the note; it’s trashy on old notes.

In real note, you can feel and even pull-out this ribbon on some old notes. However, in counterfeits, there’s something that looks like a ribbon but it’s not—just paint. Try scratching that ribbon, it come off like the silver panel on a recharge card.

Paper and colour quality

While counterfeits are made of ordinary papers, real money is made of a special kind of paper. Feeling the paper-quality of counterfeits, you’ll find out that it’s just like that of paper found on the streets. The colours of counterfeits also betray it. The drawings on counterfeits are more blurry, blotchy and sometimes darker than real paper money.

Of the four methods listed above, the first, second and third are more reliable.

Source: http://mojidelano.com/2016/11/how-to-identify-fake-naira-notes/

Economy

NASD Index Appreciates by 0.58% Amid Robust Turnover

Published

24 minutes ago

20/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange further appreciated by 0.58 per cent on Tuesday, May 19, buoyed by strong investor appetite for unlisted securities.

Data from the bourse showed that the volume of securities traded during the session ballooned by 365,661.8 per cent to 1.9 billion units compared with the previous day’s 514,142 units, as the value of transactions surged by 30,433.9 per cent to N5.3 billion from the preceding session’s N17.4 million, and the number of deals increased by 22.2 per cent, as these trades were executed in 60 deals versus the 27 deals recorded a day earlier.

Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc ended the trading session as the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with the sale of 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 60.9 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion.

GNI Plc was also the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.

During the session, there were three price gainers and one price loser, led by Afriland Properties Plc, which went down by 5 Kobo to trade at N16.90 per share versus the previous day’s N16.95 per share.

But FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc appreciated by N12.45 to N151.79 per unit from N146.55 per unit, CSCS Plc expanded by 62 Kobo to N70.62 per share from N70.00 per share, and UBN Property Plc added 20 Kobo to close at N2.24 per unit versus N2.04 per unit.

At the close of business, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 24.05 points to 4,157.75 points from 4,133.70 points, and the market capitalisation chalked up N14.39 billion to close at N2.487 trillion compared with Monday’s N2.473 trillion.

Economy

Naira Further Loses 17 Kobo at NAFEX

Published

35 minutes ago

20/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira further depreciated against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Tuesday, May 19, by 17 Kobo or 0.01 per cent to trade at N1,373.87/$1 compared to the previous day’s N1,373.70/$1.

However, the domestic currency appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market window by 5 Kobo to close at N1,839.61/£1 versus Monday’s rate of N1,839.66/£1, and gained N5.97 against the Euro to settle at N1,594.52/€1, in contrast to the preceding session’s N1,600.49/€1.

Data from GTBank FX bench showed that the Naira appreciated against the US Dollar yesterday by N2 to sell at N1,381/$1 versus N1,383, and at the parallel market, it remained unchanged at N1,390/$1.

The outcome across the board came as Nigeria’s external reserves have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, which may provide some support for FX market interventions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and broader macroeconomic stability efforts.

Currency traders and investors are expected to continue monitoring CBN policy direction, foreign portfolio inflows, crude oil earnings, and external reserve performance as key indicators influencing the naira’s trajectory in the coming months.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting began on Tuesday with announcements of decisions expected later on Wednesday after inflation ticked up in April.

In the cryptocurrency market, major digital coins were down as traders focused on macro data, oil prices, and inflation, while the US Senate advanced a measure that could force President Donald Trump to seek congressional approval for the Iran war.

Ripple (XRP) went down by 1.3 per cent to $1.36, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 0.9 per cent to $0.1034, Cardano (ADA) dropped by 0.7 per cent to $0.2499, Ethereum (ETH) declined by 0.5 per cent to $2,124.02, Solana (SOL) depreciated by 0.5 per cent to $84.67, TRON (TRX) dipped by 0.4 per cent to $0.3551, and Binance Coin (BNB) slumped 0.1 per cent to $641.39.

On the flip side, Bitcoin (BTC) appreciated by 0.3 per cent to $77,114.20, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.

Economy

Nigerian Bourse Gains N917bn Amid Weak Investor Sentiment

Published

3 hours ago

20/05/2026

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

The Nigerian bourse rebounded by 0.57 per cent on Tuesday despite weak investor sentiment triggered by a negative market breadth index after finishing with 26 price gainers and 31 price losers.

Customs Street was saved from a further decline due to buying interest in some mid and large-cap equities, which offset profit-taking in others.

It was observed that the insurance sector bled by 1.64 per cent and the consumer goods index depreciated by 0.93 per cent. However, the industrial goods space appreciated by 2.27 per cent, the banking counter improved by 0.98 per cent, and the energy industry rose by 0.11 per cent.

Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) gained 1,430.59 points to settle at 251,635.42 points compared with the previous day’s 250,204.83 points, and the market capitalisation chalked up N917 billion to close at N161.280 trillion versus the N160.363 trillion it ended a day earlier.

FTN Cocoa led the advancers’ chart after rising by 10.00 per cent to trade at N9.79, Zichis increased by 9.97 per cent to N29.13, SAHCO jumped by 9.79 per cent to N156.95, Caverton flew by 9.76 per cent to N6.75, and Japaul grew by 9.73 per cent to N3.72.

Conversely, Unilever Nigeria depreciated by 10.00 per cent to N153.00, Trans-Nationwide Express crashed by 9.92 per cent to N6.99, Sovereign Trust Insurance fell by 9.81 per cent to N2.39, McNichols slumped by 9.26 per cent to N7.25, and Austin Laz declined by 7.28 per cent to N4.20.

The busiest stock on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited yesterday was Access Holdings with 88.4 million units sold for N2.3 billion. Linkage Assurance transacted 46.2 million units valued at N83.5 million, Sterling Holdings traded 44.9 million units worth N349.3 million, Secure Electronic Technology exchanged 35.0 million units valued at N31.6 million, and Zenith Bank sold 30.4 million units for N4.0 billion.

At the close of trades, a total of 704.0 million units worth N32.2 billion were executed in 64,539 deals versus the 800.5 million units valued at N37.1 billion traded in 87,096 deals on Monday, implying a decline in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 12.06 per cent, 13.21 per cent, and 25.90 per cent, respectively.