The Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) has called for support and empowerment of licensed Bureau De Change (BDC) operators to strengthen foreign exchange inflows and stabilise the Naira during the upcoming festive season.
ABCON President, Dr. Aminu Gwadabe, appealed in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos, noting that BDCs as the closest link to retail forex users could play a vital role in capturing more diaspora remittances and enhancing liquidity in the market.
Gwadabe highlighted that a significant portion of foreign exchange enters the country toward the end of the year as Nigerians in the diaspora return home for the festive season, a period popularly known as “Detty December.”
The season, he noted, is characterised by concerts, tourism, and family gatherings that drive up economic activities and dollar inflows.
Citing official data, he said Lagos State alone generated about $71.6 million from tourism, hospitality, and entertainment during the 2024/2025 festive period. According to him, empowering BDC operators to handle more diaspora inflows could help Nigeria retain more of these earnings locally.
“The BDC subsector has the potential to help Nigeria realise and retain more foreign exchange if properly empowered.
“Globally, BDCs provide liquidity at the retail end of the market and serve as agents for diaspora remittances. We can help bring home funds currently trapped abroad through unlicensed fintechs,” Gwadabe said.
Call for access to official forex channels
Gwadabe urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to democratise access to the retail foreign exchange market by allowing BDCs to source forex through formal channels.
He said this would help sustain market liquidity, curb volatility, and improve transparency.
“The CBN should leverage the BDCs to sustain market liquidity. Between 2017 and 2021, when BDCs were active, the exchange rate remained stable at around N365 per dollar. BDCs should be used to inject liquidity, check volatility, and help monitor activities in the parallel market,” he said.
- He lamented that many licensed BDCs have become redundant due to limited access to official forex windows, making it difficult for them to cover operating costs.
- However, he expressed optimism that ongoing discussions with the CBN would restore their active participation in the retail FX segment.
Reforms and recapitalisation progress
Gwadabe disclosed that ABCON is working closely with the CBN to reform and strengthen the BDC sector, which remains a key tool for central banks globally in implementing foreign exchange policies.
- On the ongoing recapitalisation exercise, he revealed that the CBN is accelerating the issuance of approvals-in-principle and final licences for qualified operators, while encouraging mergers among smaller firms to meet new capital thresholds.
- According to him, over 200 BDCs have registered under the new framework, though the exact figure can be confirmed from the CBN.
- He said the reforms would position Nigerian BDCs to compete globally and contribute meaningfully to exchange rate stability.
