Naira Depreciates Further on Investors FX Window

• Naira Depreciates Further on Investors FX Window

The Nigerian Naira on Monday depreciated against the US dollar on Investors and Exporters Foreign Exchange Window after the Central Bank of Nigeria introduced the platform two weeks ago.

The Window designed to allow investors and exporters’ access forex at market-determined rates has shifted the power to investors as most off-shores investors are said to be demanding N400 a dollar exchange rate, while local buyers were quoting rates as low as N350 a dollar.

Last week, traders held a conference call with market regulator FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange to discuss the wide range of quotes on the Naira for investors, although the meeting did not produce any resolutions. FMDQ provides daily opening and closing quotes on the Naira.

However, traders are worried about illiquidity in the foreign exchange market despite making the exchange rate market-determined for investors.

“We have done deals around N400/dollar levels,” one trader said, adding that, “Some of the off-shores investors are insisting on N400/dollar.”

The CBN had in April said it would allow investors to trade the naira at market-determined rates, a move intended to improve the dollar supply and attract foreign investors who bolted from Nigeria at the start of the latest naira crisis.