Nairametrics| In a statement issued over the weekend by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the apex bank reiterated that the sale of forex under the new policy is ‘most transparent’ and without bias to any individual or company. This came even as media reports alleging irregularities in the rates at which forex was obtained by some individuals and companies from different banks under the new forex policy made the rounds.
According to the CBN, though, it had queried the affected banks and some of the financial institutions had returned a response indicating that some of the figures were related to formatting errors which did not affect the actual rates of the reported transactions.
The CBN was quick to remind the public that under the new forex policy, it neither allocates forex nor does it deal directly with banks’ customers. In addition, it stated that the CBN did not fix forex rates for transactions by individuals or companies, but expected that banks to forward to it, evidence of forex sale to end users and to advertise same in national dailies, in line with its principle of transparency.
“Since the introduction of the new FX Policy in 2016, we have published, monthly, the evidence of sale from deposit money banks (DMBs), as received from the banks and without any alteration by us in the spirit of transparency. We have recently observed, however, that some DMBs forwarded inaccurate data, which were erroneously published and gave a wrong impression of disparate rates;
“The DMBs involved in providing inaccurate data have since been issued queries accordingly. Some have returned a response indicating that some of the figures were related to formatting errors which do not affect the true rates of the affected transactions. As the constitutionally authorised industry regulator mandated to manage the foreign exchange market, maintain external reserves and to safeguard the international value of the legal tender currency, we wish to state unequivocally that the CBN has a duty to perform and would not indulge in acts capable of discrediting the foreign exchange market.
“We therefore wish to reiterate that the sale of foreign exchange under the new policy is most transparent and is not intended to benefit any individual or corporate body in anyway. While we appreciate the concerns of stakeholders, we urge all concerned to verify information on matters relating to the Bank and use our available channels to lodge their complaints.”
