Connect with us

    Hi, what are you looking for?

    E-Financial

    CBN begins clearing Forex backlog owed to banks

    CBN

    Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has delivered over 75 percent to 80 percent of outstanding matured FX forwards in banks.

    Isah Abdulmumin, spokesperson of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, on Thursday, said it has started clearing outstanding foreign currency forwards owed to banks, with banking sources saying an initial payment of $1 billion had been made.

    “The CBN has started paying the FX backlogs to banks. So far, 14 banks have been paid,” Isah Abdulmumin told Reuters but declined to give the amount or name the banks.

    According to BusinessDay, a source said only international banks have been settled, which include Citi Bank, Standard Chartered and Stanbic IBTC.

    While a few of the lenders were paid the entire amount owed, others got as much as 80% of the backlog, sources told Vanguard.

    Nigeria has nearly $7 billion in forex forwards that have matured, which corporations bought from local banks. Banks then repaid foreign credit lines with their own funds when the central bank did not pay out.

    The Central Bank’s payments follow Finance Minister Wale Edun’s Oct. 23 announcement that Nigeria was expecting $10 billion of inflows to improve foreign exchange market liquidity.

    It will come as a relief to local lenders, who have been struggling to meet demands from customers due to chronic dollar shortages in Africa’s largest economy.

    New Central Bank Governor Yemi Cardoso has said clearing the backlog was a priority but gave no timeline for how long it would take.

    Spread the love
    Click to comment

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    ad

    You May Also Like

    Oil and Gas

    Leading oil and gas experts in Nigeria have called for the full adoption of digital technologies to overcome the complex challenges facing the country’s...

    News

    Russia’s Finance Ministry announced on Wednesday, September 24, that it plans to raise the country’s value-added tax (VAT) to help finance the ongoing war...

    Tech

    Lagos State has reaffirmed its position as Africa’s leading technology and innovation hub following the successful hosting of the GITEX Nigeria Tech Expo, Future...

    News

    The United States has reversed its visa restrictions on Ghana after the West African country agreed to accept west Africans deported by the United...