Nume Ekeghe
The President, of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) Mr. Aminu Gwadabe has urged that Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to create a trading window in a bid to enhance dollar liquidity in Nigeria.
Also, ABCON announced that they have developed a roadmap campaign plan needed to save the naira from further decline and enhance exchange rate stability.
The ABCON National Executive Council yesterday said the move to save the naira was agreed upon by the body at the conclusion of its meeting in Lagos recently where it unveiled strategies for saving the local currency, bridging the exchange rate gaps, and curbing volatility in the forex market.
Gwadabe said there was an urgent need to enhance dollar liquidity in the market and ensure stability of prices in the economy.
These steps, he said, would save the local currency and economy from the impact of election spending that has kept inflation at double digits for a very long time.
He said: “The naira has consistently come under serious pressure due to dollar scarcity making it difficult for forex end users, manufacturers, and key industry players to access dollars needed to meet their needs. ABCON under my leadership will continue to encourage our members to play the vital role of closing the exchange rate gaps in the market and reducing widening premium between the parallel market and the official window.”
Gwadabe listed several factors that continue to undermine the naira’s stability and the local currency’s value against other currencies.
The ABCON boss called for the creation of BDCs’ Autonomous Foreign Exchange Trading Window (BAFEX) with determined maximum daily limit for legible BDCs to access dollars from banks, autonomous market, and diaspora forex widow at the prevailing market prices.
He requested for enhancement of existing BDCs’ automation portals to file transaction returns on CBN/ABCON/NFIU/NIBSS portals for effective regulatory monitoring and supervisions.
Gwadabe also sought for the creation of an automation portal to encourage registration of undocumented and unlicensed operators for effective monitoring, identification and tracking of their transactions.
He said that Bureaux De Change (BDCs)’s demand that it be included in the diaspora remittance inflow channel to allow Nigerians in diaspora remit funds to Nigeria through the BDCs under the CBN’s guidance has affected the volume of dollar inflows to the economy.
