The naira posted a weekly loss of N21.68 against the U.S. dollar in Nigeria’s official foreign exchange (FX) market, continuing a downward trend fueled by declining external reserves, despite modest daily gains over the week.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed the naira closed at N1,380.58 per dollar on Friday, representing a 1.57 percent depreciation from N1,358.90 recorded the previous Friday at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM). On a day-to-day basis, however, the currency appreciated slightly by N3.30, or 0.24 percent, from N1,383.88 per dollar on Thursday. Over the five trading days, the naira gained N7.80, a 0.56 percent rise from N1,388.38 quoted on Monday.
Meanwhile, the naira weakened further in the parallel market, closing at N1,415 per dollar on Friday, down N15 from N1,400 a week earlier. The daily loss was N3 from Thursday’s N1,412, widening the spread between official and parallel rates to N35 from N29.
The currency pressure is linked to a sustained decline in Nigeria’s external reserves, which fell for the ninth consecutive day to $49.48 billion as of March 26, 2026—a drop of $540 million, or 1.08 percent, from $50.02 billion recorded on March 11.
In response, the CBN introduced measures aimed at enhancing FX liquidity and market stability. Notably, it removed the cash pooling requirement for International Oil Companies (IOCs), allowing them full access to their repatriated export proceeds. Under the previous framework, authorised dealer banks were required to pool 50 percent of the IOCs’ earnings, with the remainder accessible only after 90 days. The new directive allows 100 percent immediate repatriation, subject to proper documentation and monthly reporting, a move expected to boost FX inflows and attract foreign investors.
Additionally, the CBN issued new guidelines for International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs), mandating that all remittance transactions be routed through designated naira settlement accounts held with authorised dealer banks. Operators may maintain multiple accounts, but all inflows must be credited exclusively into these accounts. The guidelines, titled “Measures to Further Enhance Compliance in the Remittance Space,” take effect from May 1, 2026, and require strict adherence to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regulations. IMTOs are also instructed to price transactions using real-time Bloomberg BMatch rates, while authorised dealer banks can transfer funds from IMTO accounts to other banks and licensed Bureau de Change operators, improving liquidity across the FX market.
Analysts say the combined measures reflect the CBN’s ongoing reliance on regulatory interventions to stabilize the naira, boost FX supply, curtail parallel market leakages, and restore investor confidence amid a challenging macroeconomic environment.