Naira Sustains Gains in All markets as US Dollar Trades at New Rates
- The Nigerian currency has appreciated considerably against major global tradable currencies since CBN launched the Electronic Match System
- Notably, the local currency appreciated against the British pound sterling, the euro and the Canadian dollar since December 2, 2024
- Data from CBN shows that in the last three months, the naira’s value appreciated by over 11% against major currencies
Legit.ng’s Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment and the economy for over a decade.
Since the Central Bank of Nigeria introduced the Electronic Matching System (EFEMS), Nigerian currency has been appreciated against the British pound sterling, euro, and Canadian dollar.
The apex bank mandated all banks and authorised dealers in the interbank foreign exchange market to migrate to the Bloomberg BMarch System for trading to boost transparency and efficiency.
Source: Getty Images
Naira’s rate: CBN’s EFEMS boosts transparency
The platform went live on December 2, 2024, and boosted transparency and operational efficiency in Nigeria’s forex market.
Due to this, the Nigerian naira rose in value against the British pound sterling by N209.01 to a pound, representing an 11.02% gain.
CBN data shows the pound was quoted at N1,896.62 as of February 21, 2025, relative to N2,105.63 on December 2, 2024, when the EFEMS was launched.
In the parallel segment of the foreign exchange market, the naira rose to N1,920 against the pound as of February 2, 2025, relative to an average rate of N2,238 per pound in December 2024.
Naira appreciates against euro
The local currency also gained against the euro in the official market at N176.67, representing an 11.3% gain at N1,569.16 to the euro on February 21, 2025, from N1,745.83 as of December 2, 2024.
The euro also crashed in the parallel market, closing at N1,525 on Monday, February 24, 2025, trading at N1,600 per euro.
The Canadian dollar also traded low in the black market at N1,100 to CAD as of Monday, February 24, 2025.
Since the EFEMS commenced, the Nigerian currency has gained N157.50 against the US dollar, representing a 10.48% gain relative to the N1,660 it traded on December 2, 2024.
Naira closes gaps in official, parallel markets
Meanwhile, on Monday, February 24, 2025, the naira opened positively against the US dollar at N1,497.110 per dollar.
Information from the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) shows that currency dealers quoted the dollar at a high of N1,504 and a low of N1,495 per dollar.
The naira closed at N1,501 to the dollar from the N1,491 it traded on Friday, February 21, 2025.
The local currency depreciated slightly by N10 against the dollar in the official window.
Source: Getty Images
The naira trades strong in the black market
However, the naira remained strong in the parallel market, trading at N1,500 per dollar on Monday, February 24, 2025.
The naira hit a seven-month high in the parallel market, as the last time the local currency traded at that level was June 21, 2024.
With the current rate, the margin between the official and parallel windows has narrowed to N1, which analysts say is excellent compared to the over N100 gap that existed last week.
Dollar falls in all markets as naira strengthens
Legit.ng earlier reported that the Nigerian currency, the naira held steady across all forex markets despite the decline in the nation’s reserves.
Information from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that the naira rose in value to N1,502 per dollar week-on-week, gaining 0.56% or N8.50 relative to N1,511 it closed the previous week at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM).
Currency dealers quoted the dollar at a high of N1,509 more than the N1,520 quoted the previous week.
Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng
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