Apex bank orders banks to sell forex to travelers over the counter ahead of summer

intern

May 30, 2018 11:27 AM

As summer approaches, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directed financial institutions to make foreign exchange available to customers over the counter to allow travellers have easy access to dollars.

The apex bank also mandated all Bureaux de Change (BDCs) to access dollars from the CBN on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays every week.
The directive is in a bid to ensure that eligible travelers are able to access foreign currency and make liquidity available in the market.
The Central of Nigeria has been intervening in the foreign exchange market to checkmate any attempt to trigger artificial scarcity of the greenback

As summer approaches, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed financial institutions to make foreign exchange available to customers over the counter to allow travellers have easy access to dollars.

The apex bank also mandated all Bureaux de Change (BDCs) to access dollars from the CBN on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays every week.

Also READ: From June 2018, you can only make N100,000 transaction per day on USSD channels

Isaac Okoroafor, the apex bank’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications in a statement issued on Saturday, May 26, 2018, stated that in a bid to ensure that eligible travelers are able to access foreign currency and make liquidity available in the market, the CBN had issued the directives.

“All-Deposit Money Banks are mandated to buy and sell foreign currency to travelers (both customers and non-customers) upon presentation of relevant valid travel documents such as visa and tickets over the counter.

“All travelers shall be attended to immediately at the bank’s counters."

Also READ: Here’s why Nigeria may keep multiple forex rates till 2020

The CBN further stated that it is compulsory that all BDCs access currency at least three times weekly which is Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

The statement warned that BDCs that failed to access the FX window at least three times weekly would have their licenses reviewed by the CBN – emphasising that compliance with the new directive was compulsory.

On Thursday, May 24, 2018, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) also released $100 million into the Nigerian Forex market to boost liquidity in the market to operate obligations of Nigerians travelling for pilgrimage.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has been making precautionary monetary policy moves by injecting more United States Dollars into the foreign exchange market to checkmate any attempt to trigger artificial scarcity of the greenback.

Since the liberation of the forex market, the naira has remained stable.

intern