The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Friday unveiled a series of fresh operational guidelines for forex sales by Bureau de Change (BDC) operators in the country.
This is coming more than two years after the suspended CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, announced the suspension of foreign exchange sales to BDC operators in that segment of the forex market.
Under the new framework, the spread on buying and selling by BDC operators is set to fall within a permissible range of -2.5% to +2.5% of the Nigerian foreign exchange market window’s weighted average rate from the previous day.
This move is expected to provide more stability and transparency to exchange rate fluctuations, ultimately benefiting both BDC operators and the general public.
Meanwhile, the apex bank has issued an advisory note on the illegal activities of financial operators in the country in an effort to guide the general public against falling victim to Ponzi scheme operators and loan sharks.
While raising concerns over the increasing rates of illegal financial operators, the CBN in a statement released on its website explained that the activities of IFOs portend a grave risk to the country’s financial system.
The apex bank, through its Financial Services Regulation and Coordinating Committee (FSRCC), has asked the public to refrain from dealing with unlicensed or illegal financial operators who lure and defraud unsuspecting members of the public by offering extraordinary returns on investments.