A spokesman of Abokifx.com has offered a preliminary response to CBN governor Godwin Emefiele, vehemently denying the website has been involved in naira manipulation and sabotage.
In a mailed response, the spokesman denied in capital letters all the allegations against abokifx.com.
He also explained the siteโs modus operandi:
โAbokiFX does NOT TRADE FX NEITHER DO WE MANIPULATE RATES IN ANYONEโS FAVOURโ, he said.
โALL RATES PUBLISHED ARE RANDOMLY SOURCED DAILY FROM VARIOUS MARKET LOCATIONS IN LAGOS ONLY.
โTHE SOURCES ARE NEVER AWARE OF THE USE OF THEIR RATES WHICH HELPS AVOID ANY FORM OF MANIPULATION OR DISTORTION AS WE USE A LARGE SAMPLE SIZE.
โTHIS EXPLAINS WHY OUR RATES ALIGN WITH THE MARKET, AS THE MARKET IS THE SOURCE OF THE RATES.
โTHIS ALSO EXPLAINS WHY WE HAVE THREE DAILY QUOTES AS WE NEED MARKET GUIDANCEโ.
The spokesman said the CBN is yet to contact the company over any allegation and that none of its accounts has been blocked, as at 4.05pm when he sent a mailed response to us.
โCBN has not contacted us yet with any allegation but in light of the MPC meeting today, some information will be coming out from our legal team.
โAbokiFX still remains a research and information entity with the sole aim of gathering and sharing market data with the public.
โOur accounts are not closed and are still functional at the time of sending out this information.
โOur legal team is currently working on putting a statement out shortlyโ.
After the Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja today, CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele said the owner of the abokifx website, Mr. Olusegun Adedotun Oniwinde, a UK based Nigerian, has been declared.
He accused Oniwinde of economic sabotage.
Oniwindeโs abokifx.com, publishes the daily rates of the Naira, in the unregulated market.
Emefiele confirmed reports that the apex bank has been making enquiries on the legality of the operations of abokiFX.
Emiefiele referred to Oniwinde as an illegal FX dealer, who will be prosecuted for endangering the Nigerian economy.
Publishing the rates, the CBN contended is against the the โNational Intelligence Committee Actโ.
Emefiele said Oniwinde started the abokiFX operation in 2015 and has since milked the economy by taking position, while manipulating the exchange rate.
Emefiele promised to ensure that Oniwinde is captured and made to answer to the law.
