Aug 27 (Lagos) - From Monday, August 31 the Central Bank of Nigeria will restart sale of forex to Bureau De Change's (BDC's) in the country.
Providing a breakdown of the rates, the CBN said: “Please be advised that the applicable exchange rate for the disbursements of proceeds of IMTOs for the period Monday, August 31 to Friday, September 04, 2020, is as follows:
IMTSOs to banks: N 382/$1
Banks to CBN: N 383/$1
CBN to BDCs: N 384/$1
BDCs to end-users: Not more than N 386
Volume of sale to each market is $10,000 per BDC.
The apex bank said FX sales to BDCs will hold on Mondays and Wednesdays in the first instance.
Above info is from the circular signed by the Director of Trade and exchange department of the CBN.
This move by CBN could help in Naira appreciation in the parallel market but will that happen is yet to be seen. The CBN has got to be more responsive to sudden changes in the forex environment because their delays cause economic damage that is difficult to repair with a memo.
Currently the Dollar/Naira exchange rate in the parallel market is around N 477 to $1, that is a huge difference and a huge deterrent to any economic growth in the country.
Hopefully the CBN can corner forex hoarders and speculators this time around. We will all see next week when the sales re-start if the Naira will indeed trade at 386 for more than a few minutes.
Lack of enforcement could simply undo everything written in the CBN memo circular. Without proper enforcement, hoarders and speculators could consume the $10,000 per BDC in a few hours twice a week. So we need proper enforcement of rules something that has not happened till now. We pray they get it right this time for the sake of our economy and our country.
reporting for easykobo.com on Thursday, August 27 2020 from Lagos, Nigeria