in

CBN Sells $876.26m At ₦1,495 In Retail Auction

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold $876.26 million to end customers, with bids submitted by 26 institutions.

According to a circular issued by the central bank on Wednesday, the measure is intended to strengthen the naira, which is dropping.

The development comes as the naira is under pressure due to seasonal demand from summer tourism and businesses seeking the dollar to bring goods into the import-dependent nation.

According to the circular, 32 authorised dealer banks submitted bids totaling US$1.18 billion.

Bids valued at US$876.26 million from 26 banks qualified, while bids worth US$313.69 million from six institutions were dismissed.

Four banks were disqualified because they submitted proposals after the 3:00 PM deadline, and two banks failed to offer bids in the required format. Furthermore, all bids on the Trade Portal that included Form Q and unverifiable Forms A and M were invalidated.

The CBN has approved a cut-off rate of N1495/US$ for the Retail Dutch Auction.

The detailed findings and qualified bids will be made available on the CBN’s website to ensure openness.

Settlement for approved bids is set for Thursday, August 8, 2024.

The sale followed “growing unmet foreign exchange demand,” which has “continued to increase the demand pressure in the foreign exchange market, with adverse impact on the exchange rate of the naira,” according to an Abuja-based Central Bank of Nigeria circular to lenders last week.

D’Tigress Suffer Olympic Quarter-Final Defeat To USA

Tobi Amusan Fails To Reach Olympic Women’s 100m Hurdles Final