Fidelity Bank Sensitises Investors, Exporters on New CBN RT200 FX Policy

By Dipo Olowookere

One of the leading financial institutions in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank Plc, recently organised a workshop to sensitise investors and exporters on the implementation and opportunities in the policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) aimed to generate $200 billion in foreign exchange (FX) through repatriation from non-oil exports over the next five years.

The new CBN RT200 FX policy is the latest initiative of the apex bank to ease the pressure on the Naira and make it stronger than it is at the moment.

Fidelity Bank, which is determined to actively support the scheme, felt it was necessary to carry its customers along and this necessitated the workshop organised in Kano on Monday for stakeholders.

At the gathering, the Executive Director in charge of Northern Businesses at Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr Hassan Imam, stated that the financial institution would not relent in its efforts to bridge the knowledge gap in the non-oil sector space by facilitating the necessary processes and documentation for the new policy, with the goal of increasing FX repatriation through exportation.

On his part, the Regional Bank Head of North West 1 at Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr Mannir Ringim re-emphasised the lender’s readiness to support the government’s economic imperatives to boost revenue in the non-oil sector of the economy.

“As you know, Nigeria is currently an import-dependent economy with so much pressure on our currency and the source of revenue as a nation is petrol dollar.

“So, the initiative of the CBN is to leverage on our non-oil products especially in agriculture like the hibiscus flower, cashew nut sesame and many other products for exports.

“Now, Fidelity Bank wants to remain the exporters’ bank of choice not only by providing finance but by helping exporters in bridging the knowledge gap in exporting their commodities.

“We are committed to this initiative to improve our economy, reduce pressure on local currency and provide an enabling environment to grow the non-oil sector to also create massive job opportunities,” he said.

Speaking on the need for strategic planning in the non-oil sector, Head of Export and Agric Businesses at Fidelity Bank, Mr Isaiah Ndukwe said the bank is well-positioned to advance the CBN policy thrust to reduce our over-dependence on oil revenue in the country.

He stated that the bank is committed to improving the banking system’s competitiveness while focusing on developing exporters’ capability in the fundamentals of local commodity exportation. Isaiah emphasized that the new policy will not only reshape exporters’ mindsets but will also infuse value addition on their commodities, allowing them to earn more forex.

According to him, the workshop tagged Harnessing Export Business Opportunities, CBN RT200 FX Programme: current issues, non-oil exports and implications to business; drew inspiration from the policy’s guidelines.

The guidelines involve the provision of a single-digit credit facility to exporters, provision of rebates on foreign currency, funding of commodity production and value-addition processes, building terminals and the convening of a biannual summit for the review of the implementation of the policy.

Exporters at the sensitisation event expressed satisfaction with the capacity-building initiative as it enabled them to get acquainted with the CBN policy and opportunities in the export business.

Fidelity Bank is a full-fledged commercial bank operating in Nigeria with over 6 million customers who are serviced across its 250 business offices and digital banking channels.

Business Post recalls that on February 10, 2022, the CBN unveiled the RT200 FX Programme as part of measures to reduce the increasing demand for foreign currency by importers, which frequently puts excessive pressure on the exchange rate.

With the implementation of this policy, the CBN has stated that the supply of foreign currency to commercial banks will cease by the end of 2022, while investors will be able to generate forex through the RT200 FX Program template provided to strengthen commodity exports.