“N969.83/£1”: Naira Reverses Gains, Falls to Dollar, Pound, Euro as NNPC’s $3Bn Loan Buzz Fades

• Nigerian currency, the naira, has once again depreciated against the United States dollar in both the official and black foreign exchange markets
• The poor performance of the naira indicates that the excitement surrounding a $3 billion loan secured by NNPC Limited has faded
• Since the NNPC emergency loan announcement, the naira has recorded consecutive days of gains against foreign currencies

The value of the Nigerian Naira depreciated against the US Dollar, Pounds Sterling, and Euro across the foreign exchange markets on Monday, August 21, 2023.

The fall of the naira comes after improvements were recorded last week when the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited secured a loan from Afreximbank.

The loan created a buzz of excitement that the Central Bank of Nigeria now has enough dollar supply to meet demands from importers and Nigerians traveling.

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Naira to dollar exchange rate

Checks by Legit.ng show that at the Investors and Exporters (I&E), the official foreign exchange, the naira closed at N761.32/$1 on Monday.

This represents a N21.80 or 2.98 percent drop in value compared to last Friday’s closing price of N739.52/$1.

A total of $64.98 million in forex transactions where exchanged among participants, according to data from FMDQ Securities Exchange.

Naira exchange rate at the unofficial market

While at the black market, the Nigerian currency's naira depreciated against its American counterpart on Monday by N10 to quote at N855/$1 compared with the preceding session’s rate of N845/$1.

Similarly, the Naira fell against the US Dollar in the Peer-2-Peer (P2P) windows by N36 on Monday to close at N880/$1 versus N844/$1 of the previous trading session.

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Naira value against other foreign currencies

Data from the CBN shows that at the spot market, the Naira to the Pound Sterling in the official market showed a similar pattern as it declined by N21.76 to sell at N969.83/£1 compared with last Friday’s value of N948.07/£1.

For the Euro, the Naira recorded a loss of N19.64, resulting in a closing rate of N829.06/€1, compared to the previous rate of N809.42/€1.

CBN announces dollar to naira price verification portal

Meanwhile, in another report, it was revealed that the Central Bank of Nigeria had introduced a new portal that will put an end to malpractices in the foreign exchange market.

The portal is set to go live by the end of August 2023, and it is expected that it could be a game-changer if it is done right

Source: Legit.ng