The President of the Association of Bureaux de Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Dr. Aminu Gwadabe, says recent reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have helped the naira recover in value.
In the parallel market, the naira traded at around N1,590 per dollar recently, improving from N1,620 per dollar earlier in the week. Officially, the naira strengthened to N1,475 per dollar on Friday.
Gwadabe believes the rebound shows that the CBN’s policies are effective. He has urged the CBN to lower the high capital requirements for BDCs, making it easier for operators to stay in business. He also wants the CBN to allow ABCON to regulate its members, which would improve market transparency.
The new CBN guidelines require top BDC operators to have a minimum capital of N2 billion, while smaller ones need N500 million. The new rules aim to reduce bad practices and ensure that foreign exchange transactions are fair and transparent.
CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso launched a new foreign exchange code to improve trust in the naira. The code, effective since December 2024, aims to prevent unethical practices in the currency market.
Cardoso noted that last year’s reforms, like ending special financial programs and unifying exchange rates, were necessary to stabilize the economy. These reforms also aimed to make the naira’s value more market-driven.
The Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS), introduced in December 2024, has also helped in improving market efficiency.
