CBN pegs Naira at N392/$ for bureau de change operators

28 Nov CBN pegs Naira at N392/$ for bureau de change operators

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed bureau de change operators in the country not to sell dollars higher than N392 to end users. This came on a day the Naira fell 2.02% to a low of 495 on the black market, as dollar scarcity persisted, widening the gap with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official rate, where the currency has been trading within a range since July. In a circular signed by O.S. Nnaji, director of trade and exchange at the CBN, the apex bank said the volume of sales for each market is $10,000 per bureau de change (BDC).

“Please be advised that the applicable exchange rate for the disbursement of proceeds of IMTOs, for the period Monday, November 30 to Friday, December 14, 2020, is as follows: International money transfer service operators (IMTSOs) to banks – N388/$1; Banks to CBN – N399/$1; CBN to BDCs – N390/$1; BDCs to end-users not more than N392/$1,” the circular read.

Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed said the government was concerned about the widening gap between the exchange rate on the black market and the official rate, a situation caused by low revenues from oil, Nigeria’s main export.

“We have been trying to take measures to close the gap and the progress is not as much as we hope,” Ahmed told Bloomberg Television. “The reason why we have the gap is because of the decline in the revenues from the oil and gas industry.”