- The Central Bank of Nigeria has cleared the outstanding $7 billion foreign exchange backlog
- The CBN said the backlog was cleared following the completion of the verification exercise by forensic auditors
- It said the move would ease off the bottlenecks associated with the repatriation of funds by businesses, multinationals, and foreign investors
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced that the Federal Government has cleared the outstanding $7 billion foreign exchange (FX) backlog following a successful verification exercise by forensic auditors.
CBN governor, Olayemi Cardoso, disclosed this at the launch of Nigeria’s Regulatory Policy Framework organised by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), which took place at the State House Conference Hall in Abuja, on Wednesday, January 29.
Cardoso noted the optimism that the clearance of the $7 billion backlog would ease off the bottlenecks associated with repatriation of funds by businesses, multinationals, and foreign investors.
The CBN governor added the outstanding forex clearance took longer than expected due to practices that should not have happened.
He said, “In addressing foreign exchange liquidity constraint, decisive steps have been taken to clear outstanding $7 billion forex backlog to ensure that businesses, multinationals, corporations, and foreign investors can repatriate funds seamlessly.
“This initiative has restored confidence among market participants and reinforced Nigeria’s commitment to honouring financial obligations in a timely and efficient manner. Talking about the $7 billion backlog, we have cleared the verified claims.
“We also looked at the unverified ones, and I believe that we are at the final stages of separating what qualifies as fully verified, and we will surely be paying out those money that have been verified by the forensic auditors.
“It is unfortunate, to be honest, that it has taken so long. But the truth of the matter is that there were a lot of practices that went on that really should never have happened in the first place.
“That said, we are going to ensure that we do what we need to do to strengthen our market and create a better trust in what you investors naturally desire and deserve.”
Cardoso announced completion of forensic verification
It would be recalled that Cardoso announced the completion of forensic verification to clear all pending foreign exchange backlogs, saying it will soon commence payments.
He stated this on Tuesday, January 28, during the launch of the Nigeria Foreign Exchange (FX) Code, which aims to foster ethical conduct among authorised dealers and transparency in the forex market.
Cardoso said, “The $7 billion of FX backlogs that has taken over 12 months to verify has led to the discovery of multiple unethical and even illegal practices that we should not be proud of as a nation.
“The forensic verification process is now near complete, and final settlements will be processed accordingly.”
PEBEC seeks CBN’s collaboration on stable policy environment
In her address, the Director-General of PEBEC, Princess Zahrah Audu, sought the collaboration of the CBN to ensure a stable and predictable policy environment for companies.
Audu explained that such expectations from companies are one of the key indicators for the commission.
She said, “We are going to help you become a part of the formation of this policy because one of the things we actively encourage our MDAs to do is to have a sectoral stakeholder engagement in smaller groups. Now there is a more thorough process to go through before a policy is passed into law.
“It is very important to note that this administration will do things differently. We are constantly asking for your input because we don’t think we know it all. When you look at business from a government perspective, it is very different from looking at it from a private sector view.
“It is important that we always balance the two and see ourselves as stakeholders. Our doors will always be open, and we will be very responsive when it comes to calls and emails. As earlier said, my predecessor has left a viable platform for us to build on.”
CBN issues strong warning on violations of new foreign exchange code
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, issued a stern warning to financial institutions, stressing that any violations of the newly launched Nigeria Foreign Exchange (FX) Code will lead to severe sanctions.
During the launch of the FX Code at the CBN headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, January 28, Cardoso emphasised the critical role the framework will play in restoring trust and transparency in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market.
