The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said on Wednesday that it had finally paid off all legitimate foreign exchange backlogs, processing claims totaling US$7 billion in inheritance.
Acting Director of Corporate Communications at CBN, Hakama Sidi Ali, included this in a statement that was mailed.
According to her statement, the CBN has completed the payment of $1.5 billion to resolve bank customer commitments, thereby resolving the remaining amount of the foreign exchange backlog.
She also revealed that these transactions were carefully examined by independent auditors from Deloitte Consulting, who made sure that only valid claims were honoured and that fraudulent transactions were quickly reported to the appropriate authorities for additional investigation.
Restoring credibility and confidence in the Nigerian economy is a top priority, according to Cardoso’s recent declaration that the FX backlog must be cleared.
“At this time, I can assure you that we have cleared all real, verifiable transactions. It was crucial that we go through an impartial and trustworthy process to ascertain the legitimacy of those commitments. We have now completely overcome this obstacle to market confidence in the nation’s capacity to fulfil its commitments,” he said.
The Monetary Policy Committee meeting last month outlined a comprehensive plan to stabilise the exchange rate, reduce import inflation, and boost confidence in the financial sector and the economy. A component of this plan includes clearing the backlog of foreign exchange transactions.
Cardoso also established expectations for consistent gains in Nigeria’s foreign currency reserves and enhanced foreign exchange market liquidity during the MPC meeting and the conference call that followed with foreign portfolio investors.
As of March 7, 2024, external reserves have increased significantly by $993 million to $34.11 billion, the greatest amount in eight months.
The notable increase in remittance payments from Nigerians living abroad and the rise in foreign investor purchases of local assets, like government debt instruments, were the main drivers of the month-over-month increase.
