The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has officially concluded the forensic audit into undelivered forward foreign exchange (FX) transactions and refunded the value of all unfulfilled and unvalidated deals to banks in naira.
This development was contained in a letter dated August 4, 2025, signed by Okey Umeano, the Acting Director of the Financial Markets Department, and addressed to all authorised dealer banks.
In the letter seen by Nairametrics on Wednesday, the apex bank confirmed that the audit, which was initiated to resolve the backlog of failed forward FX commitments, had been “successfully concluded.”
The letter noted that all validated transactions had been paid, while the local currency equivalent of outstanding and unverified transactions had been returned to the banks.
“Following the completion of the audit, the payment of all validated forward transactions has been effected,” the circular stated.
“In addition, the naira value of all unvalidated and unfulfilled forward transactions has been returned to the respective Authorised Dealer Banks.”
The CBN added that with the conclusion of this exercise, the issue of undelivered forward transactions should now be considered resolved.
“Consequently, the matter of undelivered forward transactions is hereby considered concluded and closed,” the letter said.
The bank also acknowledged the cooperation of stakeholders throughout the audit period.
What you should know
Earlier, The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) raised alarm over what it describes as the unjust treatment of its members by certain commercial banks in connection with unmet foreign exchange forward obligations.
In a statement issued signed by the Association’s Director General, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, MAN called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to intervene urgently.
“We call on the Central Bank of Nigeria to direct the concerned commercial banks to immediately unfreeze the accounts of innocent manufacturers in relation to the vexed issue of forex forwards,” the statement read in part.
- The refund process marks a major step in the apex bank’s efforts to restore confidence in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market. Undelivered forward transactions had piled up during the height of Nigeria’s FX illiquidity crisis, raising concerns among foreign investors and exporters over the country’s payment credibility.
- The refund in naira, rather than in US dollars, suggests the CBN’s continued preference to manage its FX liabilities cautiously amid limited external reserves. It also follows earlier moves by the Bank to clear FX backlogs to airlines, foreign investors, and other counterparties in a bid to stabilise the FX market and encourage inflows.
- Earlier in March 2024, the CBN announced the complete clearance of the valid foreign exchange backlog.
- This was after the CBN governor, Olayemi Cardoso, in February, disclosed that about $2.4 billion foreign exchange backlog is not valid for settlement.
Cardoso clarified that out of the initially reported $7 billion FX liabilities of the federal government, about $2.4 billion were identified as invalid following a forensic audit by Deloitte Management Consultant.
Deloitte Consulting’s independent auditors were tasked with examining these transactions closely, ensuring the settlement of only legitimate claims and referring any questionable transactions to the relevant authorities.
