Naira Value Improves to N1,421/$1 at Official Market

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira appreciated against the US Dollar by 44 Kobo or 0.03 per cent in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, January 24 to sell for N1,421.63/$1 compared with the N1,422.07/$1 it was traded on Thursday.

This was buoyed by increased FX inflows from exporters as well as sustained Dollar volume from non-bank corporate, individual and other sources.

However, the Naira lost N15.61 against the Pound Sterling in the same market window yesterday to quote at N1,924.17/£1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,908.56/£1 and depreciated against the Euro by N3.60 to finish at N1,669.56/€1 versus the N1,665.96/€1 it was exchanged a day earlier.

At the GTBank forex counter, the Nigerian currency traded flat against its American counterpart at N1,430/$1, and also maintained stability against the greenback at the parallel market segment during the session at N1,485/$1.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market took a hit as slowdown occurred, explained by large holders taking profits.

The market had seen a short lived boost after Japanese intervention sent the Yen surging against the US Dollar, a move some saw as a necessary step toward resuming a bull market in crypto.

However, investors took profit with Dogecoin (DOGE) down by 0.8 per cent to $0.1240, and Cardano (ADA) down by 0.7 per cent to $0.3585.

Further, Solana (SOL) dropped 0.6 per cent to sell at $126.89, Litecoin (LTC) depreciated by 0.5 per cent to $68.42, and Binance Coin (BNB) fell by 0.1 per cent to $890.13.

But, Ripple (XRP) appreciated by 0.4 per cent to $1.91, Ethereum (ETH) rose by 0.3 per cent to $2,953.72, and Bitcoin (BTC) grew by 0.1 per cent to $89,477.58, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.