The Central Bank of Nigeria has threatened to sanction any bank that fails to sell foreign exchange to anyone over the counter once the person provides the necessary documents.
The bank’s directive is that it did not matter whether the buyer is a customer or not.
According to it, once the person is able to provide the necessary document, he or she should be attended to.
The warning was given by the CBN in a statement issued by its Ag. Director, Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor, on Saturday.
The bank also directed that the frequency of the sale to licenced BDCs be increased to three times a week –Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
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The statement reads: “All Deposit Money Banks are mandated to buy and sell foreign currency to travellers (both customers and non customers) upon presentation of relevant valid travel documents such as visa and tickets OVER THE COUNTER. All travelers shall be attended to immediately at the bank’s counters. Any contravention will be sanctioned by the CBN.
“It is compulsory that all BDCs Access Currency at least three times weekly. Any BDC that fails to access the FX window at least three times weekly shall have their license reviewed by the CBN. Compliance is Compulsory.”
The directive of the CBN is believed to be a move to stem the fall of the Naira against the dollar in the past few days.
A deliberate hoarding of the greenback by dealers is suspected to be responsible for the development.
