FELIX OLOYEDE
In a bid to further ensure stability in the country’s foreign exchange market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reduced the rate it sells dollars to Bureau de changes (BDCs) to N357 per dollar from $/N360. The apex bank also cut the rate BDCs sell dollars to the public to $/N360 from $/N362.
Mr. Isaac Okorafor, acting Director, Corporate Communications Department, CBN, who disclosed this said the reduction was to enable BDCs compete favourably in the forex market.
The Association of Bureau de Change Operator of Nigeria (ABCON) in reaction to this development reiterated its commitment to ensuring actualization of CBN’s vision of a single foreign exchange market and stability, its president, Aminu Gwadabe told Business Hallmark in a Whatsapp message.
With this reduction, the CBN has now unified the rate banks and bureau de changes buy and sell dollars.
“ABCON as a stakeholder and an umbrella body of over 3500 licensed BDCs will maintained the tenants of price discovery and transparency in our sub-sector for investors’ confidence, general price stability, accessibility of foreign exchange by critical retail end users.
“We therefore warned pundits of hoarding, speculation, rent seeking, illegal cash boarder transfers to stay clear as the new policy will in no doubt make any act of economic sabotage risky with monumental loses,” he explained further.
He lauded the CBN for its continuous bravery in dealing with the market fundamentals proactively and squarely.
“Now with the uniformity of prices, strong fiscal buffers, fiscal discipline, Yuan swap, investors’ confidence, there is no doubt in my mind that the Naira is on its journey to sovereignty in Africa,” Gwadabe concluded.
