Business

Naira Reaches All-time Low At Official Market

Published

2 years ago

February 13, 2024

The naira fell to a new all-time-low of N1,534/$ on the official Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market on Monday.

This indicates a loss of 3.93 per cent fall or N58 from the N1,476.13/$ the national currency closed last week Friday, according to FMDQ Exchange, a platform that publishes official foreign exchange trading in the country.

Monday’s official rate became the worst official exchange rate since the Central Bank of Nigeria floated the national currency in June 2023.

However, at the parallel market on Monday, the naira traded between the rate of N1,480 and N1,490. It appears the local currency has been trading higher at the parallel market in recent times especially since the FMDQ reviewed the methodology it uses to calculate the official exchange rate.

The change in the methodology for the calculation of the official exchange rate had led to the depreciation of the naira from over 900/dollar to over 1,400/dollar.

Sometime in December, the naira closed above the N1000/$ on the official window. On December 8, the naira first fell to an all-time low of N1,099.05/$. On December 28, 2023, it closed at N1043.09/$, and N1035.12/$ on January 3, 2024. On January 9, 2024, it closed at N1089.51/$ and N1082.32/$ on January 10, 2024. It had also fallen to an all-time-low of N1348.63/$ on January 30, 2024, when the FMDQ reviewed its methodology for the calculation of the official exchange rate.

Meanwhile, dollar sales by banks dropped by 56.58 per cent to $253.77 million on Friday from the peak of $584.53 million on Monday, the first trading day after the CBN ordered banks to sell excess dollars in the official FX market.

Cumulatively, commercial banks sold a total of $1.97bn in one week.

Currency traders in Abuja, also known as Bureau De Change operators, quoted the buying rate of the greenback at N1,480 and the selling price at N1,503, leaving a profit margin of N23.

Mallam Yahu, a BDC operator in Wuse, said, “We currently buy between the rate of N1,480 and N1,490, and we sell at N1,500 and N1,503.”

Another seller, simply identified as Yahaya Abdul, however said he could not buy beyond the rate of N1,460.

Business

CBN Sets POS Maximum Transactions In Fresh Guidelines

Published

10 hours ago

October 8, 2025

Editor

The Central Bank of Nigeria has rolled out fresh guidelines for agent banking, known as Point of Sales, across the country.

The apex also in the guidelines pegged daily POS transactions at N1.2 million per agent and N100,000 per individual.

CBN disclosed this in a circular signed by its Director of the Payments System Management Department, Musa Jimoh.

The guidelines further mandate all financial institutions to publish the list of all their POS agents on their website and to display it in their branches.

CBN noted that the guidelines would take effect from April 1, 2026.

“The Guidelines aim to establish minimum standards for operating agent banking in Nigeria, enhancing agent banking to provide financial services and promoting financial inclusion, encouraging responsible market conduct and improving service quality in agent banking operations.

“This circular takes effect from the date of release, while the implementation of agent location and agent exclusivity shall be in effect from April 1, 2026.

“POS agents are restricted to a maximum of N1.2 million per day. Individual customers are limited to N100,000 in daily transactions.

“These limits are intended to curb misuse, enhance financial integrity, and protect consumers within the agent banking framework,” it stated.

Business

Naira Records First Appreciation Against US Dollar At Official Market

Published

10 hours ago

October 8, 2025

Editor

The Naira recorded appreciation on Wednesday against the United States dollar at the official market, the first time in three days this week.

The Central Bank of Nigeria’s exchange rate data showed that the Naira strengthened to N 1,470.62 per dollar on Wednesday, up from N1,471.09 traded on Tuesday.

This means that the country’s currency firmed up slightly by N0.47 against the dollar on a day-to-day basis.

Monday and Tuesday, the Naira recorded negative sentiment at the official foreign exchange market.

However, at the black market, the Naira remained unchanged at N1,500 per dollar on Wednesday, the same rate exchanged on Tuesday.

The apex bank data indicated that the country’s external reserves, a determinant of the exchange rates, stood at $42.57 billion as of October 7, 2025.

Business

SEC Warns Nigerians Of AfriQuantumX Ponzi scheme

Published

11 hours ago

October 8, 2025

Editor

Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has named AfriQuatum, with a claimed worth of N76 billion, as a Ponzi scheme.

The regulator also urged the public to be cautious about investing with the firm.

SEC disclosed this in a recent statement.

According to the SEC, any person who places an investment or engages with the entity does so at his or her own risk, adding that its operations exhibit characteristics commonly associated with fraudulent Ponzi schemes.

“The attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission has been drawn to the activities of AfriQuantumX, which holds itself out as an investment platform trading on and selling cryptocurrency and stocks to investors in Nigeria.

“The Commission hereby informs the public that AfriQuantumX is not registered by the Commission either to solicit investments from the public or operate in any capacity within the Nigerian capital market,” SEC stated.