CBN issues operational measures to bridge forex gap between official and parallel markets

By Chinedu Ogbonna
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has collapsed segmentation of the foreign exchange market, saying that “All segments are now collapsed into the Investors and Exporters, I&E, window.”
The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has abolished segmentation of the foreign exchange market, stating that “All segments are now collapsed into the Investors and Exporters, I&E, window.
The CBN, in a statement signed by Angela Sere-Ejembi, director, Financial Markets, on Wednesday, June 14, notified all dealers and the general public of the immediate changes to operations in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange (F X) Market as applications for “medicals, school fees, BTA/PTA, and small and SMEs would continue to be processed through deposit money banks.”
The bank also re-introduced the “Willing Buyer, Willing Seller” model at the I&E Window, stating that “Operations in this window shall be guided by the extant circular on the establishment of the window, dated 21 April, 2017, and referenced FMD/DlR/ClR/GEN/08/007. All eligible transactions are permitted to access foreign exchange at this window.”
According to the statement, “The operational rate for all government-related transactions shall be the weighted average rate of the preceding day’s executed transactions at the I&E window, calculated to two (2) decimal places.
“Proscription of trading limits on oversold FX positions with permission to hedge short positions with OTC futures. Limits on overbought positions shall be zero.
” Re-introduction of order-based two-way quotes, with bid-ask spread of El. All transactions shall be cleared by a Central Counter Party (CCP).
“Reintroduction of Order Book to ensure transparency of orders and seamless execution of trades.
“The operational hours of trades shall be from 9am to 4pm, Nigeria time.”
There is also “Cessation of R T200 Rebate Scheme and the Naira4Dollar Remittance Scheme, with effect from 30 June 2023.”
The statement said that “Further guidance on these matters shall be communicated in due course. All market participants and the general public are kindly enjoined to abide by these rules.”