Ahead Inauguration, Naira Falls To 760/$

Ahead of the inauguration of the next administration, the US dollar has risen to N760/$1 as politicians, including contenders for the presiding officers of the National Assembly, scamper for the foreign currency.

The inauguration of the next administration will be held on May 29, 2023. It is expected that the 10th Assembly will be inaugurated on June 13 after a proclamation letter by the new president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

According to Danzali Abdulrahman, a Bureau De Change Operator in Zone 4 Abuja on Friday, Naira falls to N765/$1.

He explained that the buying price of the Dollar against the Naira at the parallel market, popularly known as black market, is N765/$1, while selling price is N745/$1.

“There is high demand for the Dollar at the moment; we sell for N765/$1, while buying at N745/1$ as of Friday morning”, he said.

A cross-section of Bureau de Change (BDC) operators told this paper that the dollar, which had in the last four weeks hovered around N735, went up to N760 in Abuja on Thursday.

One of the BDC operators said the dollar recorded a N12 gain, the highest in recent times.

“On Wednesday, it was selling for N748 as of 8pm. But today (Thursday) it is selling for N761 as of 6pm. This is because of the mad rush for the currency by politicians,” he said.

According to him, the contenders for presiding officers of the National Assembly are reaching out to their colleagues with dollars.

“Through their agents, they are mopping up the currency. We were told that the assembly would be inaugurated next month. Aside from contenders, some people are converting their assets to dollars ahead of the inauguration. They are afraid of the policies the new administration may introduce,” he said.

A BDC operator in Kano, Sharaffadin Bello, said in Kano, a dollar is exchanged for N750 if one is buying. He added that “If you are selling, we will buy at N745 per dollar.”

Another BDC operator in Lagos, Yusuf Baba Ringim, said the price depends on how much a customer wants to exchange.

“If you’re buying $1,000 and above, we will sell it at N755 per dollar, but if it is anything less than that, then you have to pay N760 per dollar,” Ringim explained.

Asked when the currency exchange rate rose, Ringim said, “Only last week, and we have to work according to the market.”

Meanwhile, we reported that Naira depreciated against the Dollar on Monday, exchanging for N464/$1 at the investors’ and exporters’ window.

When Buhari took the oath of Office on May 29 2015, an average exchange was 197/$1 according to Exchangerates.org.uk.

It further revealed that the worst exchange rate stood at N179.8924/$1 on January 11 2015.

However, as Buhari prepares to exit the seat of power on May 29, Dollar to Naira now stands at N765/$1.

May 20, 2023