Mr Aminu Gwadabe, President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria, said that the decision to raise dollar supply to BDCs from 30,000 to 50,000 dollars would increase liquidity and availability in the market.
He said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.
NAN reports that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bankers’ Committee had on Tuesday increased the limit of the weekly supply to BDCs from 30,000 dollars.
Gwadabe said that the directive would bring more liquidity into the market and make the Naira stronger if it was well managed and done transparently.
He said that the impact of the weekly limit had been felt positively but that it was slow.
“Yes, we have started feeling the impact, but it is slow but I believe that as the banks continue to clear the BDCs according to the criteria they are bringing out, the markets will continue to be stronger.
“People will now be able to access dollars from the BDCs and once that happens you will see that the competition will bring the rates down and there will be availability.’’
He, however, said that BDC operators outside Lagos were experiencing challenges accessing dollars from the approved International Money Transfer Operators (IMTSO).
“As it is now, banks are concentrating only on Lagos as those in other parts of Nigeria have not started receiving.
“Until this money is paid all over the country and to all BDCs at the same time, that is when we will begin to see the real impact in the market,’’he said.
He said that one of the challenges was that banks were asking operators to fill or update Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.
NAN reports that the weekly limit of dollar sale to BDCs was increased based on the present prevailing circumstances, where the available Forex in the market was not sufficient to meet the needs of Nigerians. (NAN)