EXTRA: Dollar In A Free Fall As Naira Appreciates To ₦540 In The Parallel Market

Dollar has crashed to ₦540 at the parallel market as BDC operators laments.

Gatekeepers News reports that the US dollar is on a free fall as it crashed on Wednesday, November 10, 2021, to ₦540 with massive gain of over ₦30 at the parallel market also known as the black market. This has prompted many traders to predict that speculators hoarding dollars would be losing a lot of money.

The dollar which traded as high as ₦578 in recent times particularly at the end of September crashed to ₦540 and ₦535 at the parallel market on Wednesday, November 10, 2021.

Many players in the market confirmed to Gatekeepers News that the demand for foreign exchange was not high. A particular BDC operator said “many people who travelled have arrived and there is no demand for forex as many people are not travelling now”

Another BDC operator believes that with the steady appreciation of the Naira in the parallel market, many who have kept the dollar would be losing a lot.

Another BDC operator who spoke to Gatekeepers News expressed bitterness that the market is not longer lucrative as it used to be some months ago, putting the blame on CBN vs Aboki FX saga.

“Since Aboki FX stopped publishing rates, we are a bit confused. Before, we used to check Aboki FX in the morning before we begin trading but now we have to call our brothers (other BDC operators in different locations) before we know what to buy and sell. This is not good”, he lamented.

Another disgruntled BDC operator said: “Dollar crashed to ₦535 this evening, though in the morning it was ₦540“, he said after which he lamented in pidgin English, saying: “Di way dis dollar dey fall no good, business just spoil. I pray say e go rise tomorrow (referring to today, November 11).

While most of the operators lamented, one BDC operator on the other hand, expressed optimism that the dollar will rise again before or during the festive season.

“Before December we will see a rise, it might go back to ₦560 per dollar because many people will be looking for dollars.

At the I & E forex window, the Naira appreciated by 0.8% to close at ₦414.73 on Wednesday even though it fell to ₦444 in the evening of the day.

However, the CBN maintained the official rate at ₦411.37 on its website.

Parts of CBN’s efforts to stop the free fall of the Naira in recent months includes the stoppage of forex sales to BDCs. The CBN said the BDCs had turned themselves into “agents that facilitates graft and corruption activities of people who seek illicit fund flow and money laundering in Nigeria”

The CBN clamped down on AbokiFX after accusing the website and the owner of manipulating the currency to sabotage the economy.

At the last Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja, the committee urged the CBN to take further steps to restrict the activities of unauthorised and illegal dealers in the forex market.

The committee said all forex transactions must be conducted at the I&E window to ensure transparency and stability.

Disclaimer: Gatekeepers News does not set or determine forex rates. The official NAFEX rates are obtained from the website of the FMDQOTC. Parallel market rates are obtained from various sources, including online media outlets. The rates you buy or sell forex may be different from what is captured in this article.