After about two years of suspending foreign exchange (FX) supply to Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in the country, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced the restoration of FX supply to the unofficial market dealers as part of its efforts to achieve improved efficiency of FX markets and stabilize the Naira exchange rate.
The CBN, in the latest circular dated 17 August and issued by the Director, Trade and Exchange Department of CBN, Dr. S. O. Nnaji, to all the BDCs titled “Operational mechanism for all Bureau De Change operations in Nigeria”, stated that the spread on buying and selling by BDC operators would be within an allowable limit of -2.5 percent to +2.5 per cent of the Nigerian Foreign Exchange market window weighted average rate of the previous days.
“Mandatory rendition by BDC Operators of the statutory periodic reports (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly) on the Financial Institution Forex Rendition System (FIFX) which has been upgraded to meet individual Operator’s requirements.
“Operators are to note that with effect from the date of this circular, non-rendition of returns would attract sanctions which may include withdrawal of operating license. Where Operators do not have any transaction within the period, they are expected to render nil returns
“Where Operators do not have any transaction within the period, they are expected to render nil returns. Please be guided accordingly and ensure compliance”,the apex bank added
Further to the new guidelines on FX transactions by the BDCs, the CBN in collaboration with the Financial Services Regulation and Coordinating Committee (FSRCC), National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), have alerted the public to the “worrisome increase in the activities of Illegal Financial Operators (IFOS) which portends grave risk to the public confidence and stability of the Nigerian Financial System.”
The bank stated that the FSRCC and NBC in their continuing efforts to end the scourge of IFOs in Nigeria, issued the following advisory to the general public: “Refrain from dealing with unlicensed or illegal financial operators, who lure and defraud unsuspecting members of the public by offering extra- ordinary returns on investments as bait.
“Verify the licensing status of such companies and schemes on the following websites before investing in them: CBN: https://www.cbn.gov.ng; NAICOM: https://naicom.gov.ng; PenCom: https://www.percom.gov.ng and SEC: https://sec.gov.ng
It advised the public to report any individual or entities suspected to be involved in such nefarious activities to law enforcement agencies.
It would be recalled that the CBN had in August 2021 stopped the sale of FX to BDCs based on its concern “that BDCs have allowed themselves to be used for graft. They have turned themselves away from their objectives”.
The apex bank then resolved to be selling directly to commercial banks, from where customers who had legitimate and applicable transactions would be able to buy.
