The naira firmed against the dollar on the parallel market yesterday after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold about $80 million to Bureaux De Change (BDC) operators and also hinted of further dollar sales tomorrow, dealers said. The naira appreciated to N 215 to the dollar on the parallel market, compared with N228 at the previous day’s close.
It closed at N197 to the dollar on the interbank market, unchanged from the previous day. “The CBN sold about $80 million today and it is also expected to intervene in the market by selling more dollars tomorrow,” a BDC operator told the New Telegraph, pointing out that this will increase liquidity in the market and ease pressure on the naira.
In a related development, the President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Aminu Gwadabe, has disclosed that the CBN had suspended its directive asking BDC operators to request dollar buyers to provide their Bank Verification Number (BVN).
The regulator had last month asked bureau de change operators to request dollar buyers to provide their Bank Verification Number (BVN) in a bid to curb speculative bids. Reuters quoted Gwadabe as saying that, “The BVN exercise is put on hold and there is a huge market calmness. The naira is gaining strength, we expect it to close below 215 to the dollar,” he added.
The naira had weakened on the parallel market to as much as N242 to the dollar last month, on persistent dollar demand after central bank limited importers’ access to dollars on the official interbank market to buy a wide range of goods, in order to save its reserves.
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