CBN To Hold Special Dollar Sales
by Oma Ehiri
Due to the failing Naira, the Central Bank Of Nigeria has promised to intervene in the Bureau De Change by holding a special dollar sales on Friday, the 6th of February, 2015. This is to boost liquidity and is coming two weeks after the CBN increased the sales from $15,000 to $30,000.
According to a statement signed by the Director, Trade and Exchange, CBN, Mr. Olakanmi Gbadamosi,
This is to inform all licensed BDC operators that in order to improve liquidity in the BDC segment of the foreign exchange market, the CBN will be intervening in the market by selling $30,000 to interested BDCs on Friday, February 6, 2015. This is in addition to the weekly sale to the operators.
To benefit from this scheme, the BDC operators are expected to have funded their accounts by Wednesday. According to the Punch Newspaper, the The naira sold for 209 to the dollar in the parallel market operated by the BDC agents while the interbank market rate hit N190.08 on thin trades, on Tuesday.
The report also quotes the president of the Association of Bureau de Change Operators, Mr. Aminu Gwadabe to have said there was the need for the CBN to increase the dollar sales to the BDCs from the current $30,000 to $50,000. He argues that this will help to stabilise the naira and stop speculative activities. He even predicted that the Naira will sell above 220 against the dollar at the parallel market after the elections as the CBN may devalue the naira again after the February elections due to the falling oil prices and the current demand pressure.
Could the politicians be fuelling the demand on the street market as Gwadabe says?