Black Market Operators in Pains as Dollar Crashes to N880 Amid CBN's Threats to Clamp Down on Speculators

Black Market Operators in Pains as Dollar Crashes to N880 Amid CBN's Threats to Clamp Down on Speculators

  • The naira bounced back on Wednesday, August 16, 2023, gaining N55 against the dollar
  • The local currency opened trading at N880 to a dollar but later moderated at N910 per dollar
  • The performance of the naira is attributable to CBN’s recent threats to black market dealers and operators

The Nigerian currency made a significant comeback at the parallel market on Wednesday, August 16, 2023, as it rallied against the US dollar.

Checks by Legit.ng show that the naira opened the day in the black market with dealers quoting N880 to a dollar and slightly depreciating to N910 to a dollar.

Naira, FX market. CBN
Naira gains at the parallel market Credit: Bloomberg/Contributor
Source: UGC

CBN's threats reduce naira fall

The development is a significant boost for the local currency, which has been on a free fall since the Nigerian Nigerian government announced a free float of the naira.

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“No more N900/$”: BDC operators send important message to CBN as Naira records massive gain against US dollar

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It also comes after the acting Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Folashodun Shonubi, revealed that Forex speculators would soon count losses due to the plans of the apex bank to halt the naira’s fall.

Shonubi revealed that the CBN would flood the market with Forex to frustrate speculators’ plans.

Naira regains strength on Binance, others

At the Peer-to-Peer market (P2P) market, the naira appreciated after breaking below the N900 price on the cryptocurrency trading platform, Binance in the early hours of Tuesday, August 15, 2023.

Nairametrics reports that the price trajectory on the USDT/NGN chart showed a steady decline from N945 to N890 per dollar.

Reports say the Central Bank of Nigeria could intervene via the official channel as the naira gained N55 per dollar.

Forex dealers revealed that the naira’s rise is due to President Tinubu’s meeting with the CBN boss on Tuesday, August 15, 2023.

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Naira gains at the parallel market after CBN’s threats to sanction FX speculators

Shonubi said the apex bank would resume its intervention in the FX market to shut out speculators.

Naira gains at parallel market after CBN's threats to sanction FX speculators

Legit.ng reported that the naira gained against the US dollar at the parallel market, otherwise known as the black market after the Central Bank of Nigeria threatened to apply severe sanctions against speculators.

At the parallel market, the dollar, which analysts feared inched close to N1,000, closed at N942 per dollar as against N945.

The pressure on the naira at the black market began to thaw at the beginning of the week as the apex bank announced plans to boost dollar supplies in the coming weeks.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Pascal Oparada avatar

Pascal Oparada (Business editor) For over a decade, Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment, and the economy. He has worked in many media organizations such as Daily Independent, TheNiche newspaper, and the Nigerian Xpress. He is a 2018 PwC Media Excellence Award winner. Email:pascal.oparada@corp.legit.ng