The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has undertaken to go into retail auction through the authorized dealers in the inter-bank foreign exchange market, even as it asked banks to submit to it, requests made by their customers.
The auction by the CBN is coming on the heels of the success achieved so far in its intervention in other segments of the market on July 3, to the tune of $195 million.
According to the Acting Director of the Corporate Communications at the apex Bank, Isaac Okorafor, the results of the bids for retail auction will be released in the coming days.
The banks chief spokesman said that the move is in continuation of bank’s drive to ensure liquidity and stability in the foreign exchange market.
At the Bank’s intervention on July 3, authorized dealers in the wholesale window were offered the sum of $100 million. The Bank also allocated the sum of $50 million to the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) window, while it allocated the sum of $45 million for invisibles such as Basic Travel Allowance, tuition and medical bills.
Okorafor had disclosed on Monday that the objective of the Bank’s intervention was to strengthen the international value of the Naira, while also ensuring accessibility to forex by customers requiring it for genuine purposes.
Meanwhile, the Naira continued to maintain its stability in the Bureau de Change (BDCs) segment across major cities of Nigeria, closing at an average of N360 to the United States dollar on Wednesday, July 5, 2017. [myad]
