CBN injects $240m into FX market, to credit BDCs weekly

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday flooded the foreign exchange market with $240 million to meet effective demand.

The bank released the sum of $90 million to meet requests for invisibles such as travel allowances, medical and school fees.

CBN also on the same day, offered a total of $150 million to authorised dealers in the interbank wholesale auction window.

According to Isaac Okorafor, CBN spokesman, the CBN had adjusted BDC sale days to Tuesdays only to reduce logistical difficulties.

He added that henceforth the apex bank would sell $10,000 only to low-end forex dealers once a week.

Okorafor said in a bid to further ease the access of customers, the CBN had also directed all banks to pay cash over the counter to desiring foreign exchange customers.

While urging the banks to oblige the genuine requests of customers, the spokesman advised customers to report any uncooperative bank to the CBN through available platforms.

In recent months, CBN has made offers and releases to the inter-bank foreign exchange market in its bid to sustain forex rule supply to different categories of users.

Meanwhile, the CBN spokesman expressed optimism that the sum of $150 million offered to authorised dealers in the interbank wholesale window to meet the requests of genuine wholesale customers would be fully subscribed at the auction as was the case at the last auction on March 28.