•CBN lifts supply with $180m, invisibles get $80m

Currency speculators and those hoarding the dollar are expected to lose N700 million this week, as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sustains its dollar interventions in the interbank market.

Speaking on the impending loses, President, Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Aminu Gwadabe, said speculators were losing an average of N20 per dollar, with transaction volumes running into several billions of naira.

The CBN continued its intervention in the interbank market, where it yesterday offered $180 million to meet bids for forwards. The offer includes requests for invisibles, such as medicals, school fees and personal travel allowances valued at $80 million, through the inter-bank window.

Confirming the figures, the Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department, CBN, Isaac Okorafor, said the wholesale requests will be settled today, even as the interbank rate closed at N307.5 to dollar.

With the development, it is expected that the naira will further gain in the foreign exchange market in the days to come.

While disclosing that the Bank had so far met all the legitimate demands from genuine customers, Okorafor reiterated that the CBN would ensure sustainable forex liquidity and transparency 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 had made adequate provisions of foreign currency for all such legitimate purposes.

Thenationonlineng