SAN FRANCISCO, March 21, (THEWILL) – The improving fortunes of the naira in the parallel market continued on Monday as the Central Bank of Nigeria offered additional S180 million to meet bids for wholesale auction and requests for invisibles such as medicals, school fees and personal travel allowances valued at $80 million through the inter-bank window.
The naira appreciated to 445 per dollar, the pound went for N530 while the euro traded at N465 at the parallel market.
In a statement, in Abuja, on Monday, by the CBN’s acting Director, Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor, the apex bank said the wholesale requests will be settled on Tuesday.
With the development, the naira is expected to gain more grounds against the dollar for in the foreign exchange market for the days to come.
While disclosing that the bank had so far met all the legitimate demands from genuine customers, Okorafor reiterated said the CBN would ensure sustainable forex liquidity and transparency in the process to enable as many customers as possible get access to the foreign exchange they genuinely demand.
He advised eligible individuals with genuine foreign currency needs to freely approach their banks and authorised dealers with their request, stressing that the CBN has made adequate provisions of foreign currency for all such legitimate purposes.
At the Bureau De Change (BDC) window, the Naira traded for N399 to a dollar, while a Pound Sterling and Euro changes for N580 and N525, respectively.
THEWILL recalls that the CBN had since February 2017 offered over $2 billion by intervening in the forex market 11 times with the aim of bringing stability to the foreign exchange market and providing easy access of businesses and individuals to foreign currencies.
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