Kwara banks comply with CBN forex directive, sell Dollar at N411

By Mike Adeyemi

In compliance with the new Foreign Exchange (FX) regulation by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), commercial banks in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital have set up dedicated teller points for FX transactions in their branches.

National Pilot had earlier reported that the CBN last week stopped sales of FX through Bureau de Change Operators and announced that foreign exchange would now be sold through commercial banks.

A visit to some commercial banks in Ilorin metropolis on Friday by our reporter showed banks were in full compliance to the directive.

Checks at Ecobank PLC, Access Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Zenith Bank, showed that they all had designated teller points for FX transactions.

At all the banks visited, officials said that the dollar was selling at an official rate of N411.10

They said that each traveller was entitled to buy 4000 dollars per quarter for personal travels and 5000 dollars per quarter for business travels.

Speaking after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting penultimate Tuesday in Abuja, CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, said that the ban was necessary because the parallel market had become a conduit for illicit forex flows and graft.

He accused the BDCs of going beyond their mandate of selling 5000 dollars per day and abusing the forex sector.

After the announcement, the apex bank directed commercial banks to immediately set up teller points in designated branches for the sale of forex.

The apex bank further advised commercial banks to ensure that no customer was turned back or refused forex, provided that documentation and all other requirements were satisfied.

Our medium recalls that the dollar had increased to N505 from N504 at the black market immediately after CBN’s directive.