The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has granted eligible Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in the country temporary access to the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) to purchase $25,000 weekly from December 19.
This decision will enable the BDCs to purchase foreign exchange (FX) from authorised dealers to meet retail market demand.
The Acting Director of Trade and Exchange Department in CBN, T.G. Allu, disclosed this in a circular dated December 19, 2024.
The authorised dealers are banks licenced by the CBN to deal in foreign exchange.
The circular read: “In order to meet expected seasonal demand for foreign exchange, the CBN is allowing a temporary access for all existing BDCs to the NFEM for the purchase of FX from Authorised Dealers, subject to a weekly cap of USD 25,000.00 (Twenty-five thousand dollars only). This window will be open between December 19, 2024 and January 30, 2025.
“BDC operators can purchase FX under this arrangement from only one Authorized Dealer of their choice and will be required to fully fund their account before accessing the market at the prevailing NFEM rate.
“All transactions with BDCs should be reported to the Trade and Exchange department, and a maximum spread of 1% is allowed on the pricing offered by BDCs to retail end-users.”
CBN also said the Personal Travel Allowance (PTA) and Business Travel Allowance (BTA) are still available and can be accessed from banks to meet travel requirements.
“All legitimate and eligible foreign exchange transactions are expected to be completed in the NFEM, at the market-determined exchange rate.
“The CBN remains committed to a fully functional foreign exchange market and will continue to provide liquidity when necessary to manage price volatility,” the circular added.
By: Babajide Okeowo