CBN moves towards unified naira exchange rate

The Central Bank of Nigeria has indicated that it will allow the naira to weaken past its formal level as it gradually unwinds its various exchange rate regime, as shown on its website.

The ultimate bank has stopped releasing a set naira interest rate on its internet and now says that the rate will be “market-determined.” The central bank used to have an authorized rate as high as N305 per dollar. That rate has been used to guarantee that some traders, including petrol importers, received inexpensive bucks.

A study said entrepreneurs will embrace the move to a market-determined the currency exchange, of whom have lengthy accused the government of some level of capital controls and complained about the various exchange rate scheme. Last month, Yewande Sadiku, head of the Nigerian Investment Publicity Commission, said the CBN is in discussions with other organizations to switch to a flat rate for the national currency.

“Putting that on the internet implies that the central bank is moving gradually towards a single node rate window,” said Kunle Ezun, a currency analyst at Ecobank transnational Inc. in Lagos, by telephone. “To attract more inflows, the currency exchange becomes more liquid.”