The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday said that the apex bank was not interfering in the newly introduced flexible exchange rate regime aimed at ensuring foreign exchange stability as being speculated in some quarters.
Mr Godwin Emefiele, the CBN Governor, stated this at a news conference in Lagos.
Emefiele said that the flexible exchange rate regime pricing was based on market forces of demand and supply.
“CBN has not been involved in interfering in the exchange rate regime. It is a flexible exchange rate regime and prices are determined based on market forces of demand and supply.
It is important to correct that impression, it is not true that CBN is interfering in the flexible exchange rate regime,” Emefiele said.
He emphasised that the apex bank remained a player in the market but did not interfere in the pricing.
The governor added that CBN was a major player in the market and it desired to see that other players were beginning to return to the market.
“We want a situation that over time CBN will stay back and more autonomous sources of generating foreign exchange will come to the market so that we will conserve our reserve,” said the governor.
He said the apex bank remained a stakeholder and a major player in the market presently.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the CBN governor on June 15 released modalities for the long-awaited implementation of the flexible foreign exchange policy.
Emefiele announced the introduction of a two way quote, which means that buyers and sellers would state prices and quantities they are willing to buy and sell.
He also maintained that the 41 items banned in 2015 for access to forex for imports would remain banned.
Emefiele said that the exchange rate would be market determined, adding that the CBN would also participate in the market occasionally.
The bank also on June 27 launched the first Naira-Settled OTC FX Futures Market on the FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange platform. (NAN)