Two days after the Central Bank of Nigeria banned nine Deposit Money Banks from the interbank foreign exchange, the naira hit an all-time low of 409 against the dollar at the parallel market on Thursday. The affected banks were penalized over their failure to remit $2.334bn to the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account.
The naira, which closed at 402/dollar on Wednesday, was sold for 397 against the greenback on Tuesday.
Foreign exchange operators highlighted that the demand pressure on the dollar, mounted by summer travelers and parents paying schools fees of their children studying overseas, had been exacerbated by the ban on the nine lenders.
The CBN on Wednesday night readmitted the United Bank for Africa Plc into the forex market, leaving eight lenders in its regulatory net.
“The suspension of some banks from transaction in the forex market has really increased pressure on the market,” the President, Association of Bureaux De Change Operators, Aminu Gwadabe, said.
He explained, “Summer travelers abroad and parents seeking to pay the school fees of their children studying abroad at this period are making the demand to be heavy. The banning of nine banks from the forex market has not also helped the matter
The naira hit a record low since the CBN floated the currency on the official interbank market in June, first touched 400/dollar at the black market this month.
