TheCable

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has pumped fresh $180 million into the foreign exchange market, in its bid to solve the problem of forex scarcity, bedevilling Nigeria’s business environment.

The apex bank injected $80 million for personal travel allowance (PTA), school fees, and medical trips abroad, while another $100 million was sent into the system via banks for wholesale forwards market.

In a statement signed by Isaac Okorafor, the bank’s spokesperson, the CBN said its commitment to providing enough forex for legitimate business remains unshaken, reiterating that it would do everything possible to ensure the steady supply of forex to the market.

Within the last week, the naira appreciated drastically, following the CBN intervention at the interbank market.

A bureau de change operator told TheCable that the market is expecting the naira to settle around 385 per dollar, in the coming days.

The CBN had maintained that much of the dollar demand had been a bubble created by speculators and hoarders of the greenback.

On a radio programme on Monday the apex bank had warned market players and keepers of dollars to make hay and sell their holdings in order to avoid heavy losses.