Cardoso briefs senate panel, says foreign reserves now $46.7bn — highest in nearly seven years

Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Thursday informed the senate committee on banking, insurance and other financial institutions that the country’s foreign reserves have risen to $46.7 billion.

While addressing the committee, Cardoso said the reserves level is the highest in nearly seven years and now provides about 10.3 months of import cover.

The CBN governor said the gains reflect renewed confidence in the economy and improved stability in the foreign exchange market.

He told the lawmakers that the gap between the official and parallel market exchange rates has narrowed to under two percent from over 60 percent a year ago.

He added that the average exchange rate at the Nigerian foreign exchange market has strengthened to N1,442.92 per dollar as of November 26 from N1,551.08 recorded in the first half of the year.

He said diaspora remittances have surged by 66.7 percent, rising from $200 million monthly to about $600 million in recent months.

“Another important outcome was the resolution of the $7 billion of verified FX backlog, restoring credibility and confidence in the Nigerian economy,” Cardoso said.

He noted that inflation had fallen for seven consecutive months to 16.05 percent in October, the lowest in three years, while food inflation dropped to 13.12 percent.

He said the real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 3.98 percent in the third quarter of 2025, driven by crop production, ICT, real estate and financial services.

Cardoso said the prospects for 2026 are “very positive”, adding that Nigeria now ranks among Africa’s most advanced digital payments markets, powered by a vibrant fintech ecosystem that has produced eight of the continent’s nine unicorns.

Tokunbo Abiru, chairman of the committee, praised the CBN monetary policy framework, saying lawmakers have observed “remarkable macroeconomic improvements” since its last engagement with the bank in July.

“These positive indicators have not gone unnoticed globally,” Abiru said.

“I commend the bank and its leadership for the role played in earning the country favourable ratings from Fitch and S&P Global Ratings, reflecting improved investor sentiment, policy credibility, and macroeconomic stability.”