Economy

No BDC Operator Gets Forex at N305/$—ABCON

Published

6 years ago

31/12/2019

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Association of Bureau de Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) has said that none of its members gets foreign exchange (forex) at rates lower than the standard market price put in place by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This was disclosed by president of ABCON, Mr Aminu Gwadabe, in a statement issued by the group to comment on a petition written against the CBN by a lawyer. The legal practitioner, Barrister J.U. Agoyu, had claimed that the apex bank was running a dual exchange rate allocation regime.

But defending Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, the ABCON boss said the policy on foreign exchange allocation to Bureau de Change (BDC) had helped stabilized the Naira against the dollar.

Mr Gwadabe said Mr Agoyu’s petition to the Senate Committee on Finance was uncalled for, saying the accusation against the CBN governor and its management team of compromise in the allocation of foreign exchange was false.

The petitioner had pleaded with the Senate to compel Mr Emefiele to review the policy of dual exchange rate without delay to keep BDC operators in business.

During one of the sessions at the National Assembly, a member of the committee, Senator Ayo Akinyelure, had said, “There is a case against the CBN governor and his management team written by Bar. J.U Ayogu. A petition before the Senate laid on December 12, 2019 where Bar. J. U Ayogu, Esq, on behalf of the Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria wrote against the CBN over its dual exchange rate forex policy that enriches a few Nigerians and its top management staff to the detriment of many lawful Nigerians and frustrating the policy of the present administration of eradicating poverty and unemployment from all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria.”

But Mr Gwadabe, disclaiming the N305/$ rate to BDCs as claimed by the petitioner, clarified that it was not the transactional rate used in the market but used in settling government obligations.

“This is the hand work of unknown faces not ABCON. It is confrontational and lack credible evidence. The N305/$ is not a transactional rate but for settling government obligations.

“ABCON submission to the National Assembly is on Value Added Tax (VAT) exemption and review of licence fee renewal downward submitted to the CBN.

“The petitioner was never at any time appointed to speak on behalf of the BDCs,” Mr Gwadabe said.

He said that no BDC or service provider gets forex at N305 to the dollar and that the petitioner’s claim was completely false, stressing that the CBN forex policy has brought stability to the BDC sector and helped operators to embrace automation which is the standard practice globally.

Mr Gwadabe further explained that beyond the rate differentials, Nigeria needs multiple streams of forex earnings and the enlisting of more channels to attract Diaspora remittances and other foreign capital that will not only deepen the market, keep the Naira stable and boost operations of BDCs.

He said that Diaspora remittances to Nigeria, which stood at $25 billion annually in 2018, remains a reliable source of forex to the domestic economy and should form part of the revenue stream for the over 4,500 CBN-licenced BDCs.

The ABCON boss noted that there was need to make BDCs one of the channels for receiving Diaspora remittances into the economy to create more income for operators, stressing that BDCs remain at the centre of economic development and have the capacity to attract needed capital for the growth of the Nigerian economy.

“Other great areas to focus in diversifying our foreign exchange earnings include promoting Diaspora remittances for economic buffer and foreign reserves accretion as seen in India and United Arab Emirates (UAE) where migration remittances have lifted their economies.

“The ABCON Executive Council under my leadership will continue to promote improved capacity and technological advancement among BDC operators. We are also committed to better skills acquisition for BDC operators to elevate them to viable monetary regulatory partners and lead players in exchange rate stability,” Mr Gwadabe added.

He further commended the CBN management for its progressive policies and for achieving stable exchange rate that aligned with its price stability mandate, noting that with improved availability of foreign exchange, the exchange rate at the Investors’ and Exporters’ Forex window has remained stable for over two years at an average N360/$, and the parallel market exchange rate has appreciated from N530/$ in February 2017 to around N360/$.

Mr Gwadabe said the CBN has been able to create a people-focused central bank promoting macro-economic objectives such as low inflation and a stable exchange rate, along with a focus on promoting inclusive growth and reducing unemployment in the country.

Meanwhile, the leader of BDC operators in Nigeria said ABCON has appointed Mike Akinfolarin & Associates as its consultant/tax Attorneys on VAT, which is a bigger problem confronting the operators as a large part of their income go into paying taxes, adding that in other economies, foreign exchange rate control by government is VAT exempt.

“The law firm of Mike Akinfolarin &Associates (tax attorneys) made a representation on behalf of ABCON before the National Assembly public hearing – the House Committee on Finance Bill – on November 25, 2019 in Abuja. And that remains the position of ABCON,” he said.

Economy

NASD Exchange Extends Bearish Run After 0.56% Drop

Published

2 days ago

03/04/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange extended its stay in the south territory with a decline of 0.56 per cent on Wednesday, April 2.

This brought down the market capitalisation by N13 billion to N2.417 trillion from N2.430 trillion, and downed the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 22.57 points to 4,062.87 points from the previous session’s 4,062.87 points.

It was observed that the NASD exchange ended with three price gainers and three price losers during the trading day.

MRS Oil Plc depreciated by N19.00 to close at N171.00 per unit compared with the previous price of N190.00 per unit, NASD Plc lost N4.14 to trade at N37.36 per share compared with Wednesday’s N41.50 per share, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gave up N2.00 to sell at N78.00 per unit versus N80.00 per unit.

On the flip side, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc appreciated by 19 Kobo to N93.00 per share from N92.81 per share, Food Concepts Plc expanded by 15 Kobo to N2.87 per unit from N2.72 per unit, and Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc improved by 2 Kobo to 52 Kobo per share from 50 Kobo per share.

Yesterday, the volume of securities dipped by 91.8 per cent to 260.2 million units from 3.2 billion units, the value of securities went down by 98.1 per cent to N154.2 million from N8.3 billion, while the number of deals soared by 53.3 per cent to 46 deals from 30 deals.

GNI Plc was the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 56.9 million units valued at N3.9 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.5 million units traded for N1.8 billion.

The most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was also GNI Plc with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.2 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units exchanged for N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units transacted for N1.2 billion.

Economy

Naira Slips to N1,380/$1 at Official Market, Remains N1,405/$1 at Black Market

Published

2 days ago

03/04/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira dropped N2.09 or 0.15 per cent against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, April 2, to trade at N1,380.79/$1 compared with Wednesday’s rate of N1,378.70/$1.

However, it appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N2.77 to quote at N1,824.86/£1 versus the N1,836.57/£1 it was traded at midweek, and improved its value against the Euro by N10.54 to N1,591.92/€1 from N1,602.46/€1.

Yesterday was the last trading session of the week for the local currency in the spot market, as the market will be closed on Friday and Monday for the Easter Holiday.

At the black market, the Nigerian Naira maintained stability against the greenback yesterday at N1,405/$1, but gained N8 at the GTBank FX counter to settle at N1,388/$1, in contrast to the previous session’s N1,396/$1.

Pressure eased on the domestic currency as strong policy indicators have helped calm the majority of worries within the financial systems. Particularly in the remittance segment, the apex bank has directed all International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) to route remittance transactions through designated Naira settlement accounts in banks, a move aimed at boosting transparency and channelling more foreign exchange into the formal market.

This helps take off pressure from the foreign reserves, which have fallen below the $50 billion mark as they are gradually decreasing rather than falling sharply.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Thursday, as macro sentiment shifted against recent optimism after reports that Iran is drafting a protocol with Oman to manage traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns about disruptions to a key global oil route.

The remarks came after U.S. President Trump on Wednesday night vowed to hit Iran “extremely hard” in the coming weeks and that the Strait of Hormuz would “open naturally” once the war ends.

Cardano (ADA) chalked up 1.9 per cent to trade at $0.2435, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 1.2 per cent to $0.0912, Ethereum (ETH) appreciated by 0.8 per cent to $2,066.37, Bitcoin (BTC) added 0.5 per cent to sell at $67,080.53, Solana (SOL) increased by 0.5 per cent to $79.91, and Ripple (XRP) jumped 0.2 per cent to $1.31.

Conversely, Binance Coin (BNB) dipped 0.7 per cent to $586.90, and TRON (TRX) depreciated by 0.3 per cent to $0.3147, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.

Economy

Bulls, Bears Share Customs Street’s Spoils Amid Bullish Investor Sentiment

Published

2 days ago

03/04/2026

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

The local stock market was relatively flat on Friday, as the bears and the bulls shared the spoils of war, though investor sentiment turned bullish compared with the preceding session’s bearish posture.

Data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited showed that the All-Share Index (ASI) was marginally down by 4.66 points as it ended at 201,698.89 points versus Wednesday’s 201,703.55 points, and the market capitalisation slightly contracted by N3 billion to N129.806 trillion from N129.809 trillion.

Customs Street was shut on Friday because of the public holidays declared by the federal government today and next Monday.

Business Post reports that John Holt declined by 9.91 per cent to N15.45, Abbey Mortgage Bank shed 9.60 per cent to trade at N8.95, International Energy Insurance slipped by 6.48 per cent to N3.32, Chams shrank by 5.30 per cent to N3.75, and Tantalizers depreciated by 5.18 per cent to N4.03.

On the flip side, Unilever Nigeria improved by 10.00 per cent to N103.40, Fortis Global Insurance gained 9.82 per cent to trade at N1.23, Multiverse appreciated 9.81 per cent to N20.15, Legend Internet advanced by 9.38 per cent to N6.30, and Zichis grew by 9.02 per cent to N14.14.

The market breadth index was positive during the trading session, as there were 35 appreciating stocks and 24 depreciating stocks.

Yesterday, investors traded 560.0 million equities valued at N19.3 billion in 49,676 deals, in contrast to the 815.5 million equities worth N33.3 billion transacted in 52,641 deals in the preceding day, representing a drop in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 31.33 per cent, 42.04 per cent, and 5.63 per cent, respectively.

Secure Electronic Technology dominated the activity log with 59.7 million shares valued at N61.1 million, Wema Bank exchanged 52.0 million equities worth N1.4 billion, VFD Group transacted 36.0 million stocks for N410.5 million, Access Holdings sold 35.3 million shares valued at N914.8 million, and Chams traded 31.0 million equities worth N115.0 million.