CBN to Double Foreign Remittances
By Patience Ikpeme
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has developed a strategy to double the flow of foreign-currency remittance through formal channels into the country.
To achieve this, the CBN is set to give 14 new International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) Approval-in-Principle (AIP).
This was revealed by the banks Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Mrs Hakama Sidi Ali on Wednesday in Abuja .
Hakama stated that “This will spur liquidity in Nigeria’s Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), augmenting price discovery to enable a market-driven fair value for the naira.”
She explained that this will help boost the sustained supply of foreign exchange in the official market by encouraging competition among IMTOs and force them to lower their cost.
Hakama pointed out that recently, CBN Governor, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, had declared: “We’ve set ourselves a target to double remittance flows into Nigeria within a year, a goal I firmly believe is within reach.
“We are wasting no time driving progress to remove any bottlenecks hindering flows through formal channels permanently.
We have a determined pathway and a sequenced approach to tackling all challenges ahead, working hand in hand with key stakeholders in the remittance industry,” he stated.
Hakama noted that factors like fluctuations in foreign investment and oil export are the reason for the historical volatility in Nigeria’s exchange rate, which has led the CBN to increasing formal remittance flow as one of the major sources of foreign exchange, which accounts for over 6% of GDP.
The increase in the number of IMTOs is one of the primary actions initiated by the CBN’s remittance task force, headed by Governor Cardoso as a collaborative unit pulling together specialists to work closely with the private sector and market operators to facilitate the ease of doing business in the remittance ecosystem in Nigeria.
The task force was established in April 2024, during the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings held in Washington DC, United States of America as a direct result of an executive learning session with IMTOs .
The task force will meet regularly to implement strategy and monitor the impact of its measures on remittance inflows.
