CBN Withdraws Operating Licenses of 4,173 BDC Operators in Nigeria
- The CBN has taken action by revoking the operational licenses of 4,173 Bureau De Change Operators in Nigeria
- It stated that the affected BDCs failed to observe the regulatory provisions of the apex bank
- It also said it is working on guidelines which will be mandatory for all stakeholders upon the announcement
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Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over three years of experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
The CBN has revoked the operational licenses of 4,173 Bureaux De Change Operators in Nigeria.
Source: Getty Images
It said this in a statement signed by Sidi Ali Hakama, the assistant director of corporate communications, on its X page.
According to the apex bank, the affected BDCs were found wanting to breach at least one of the bank’s regulatory requirements.
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It stated:
“The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in exercise of the powers conferred on it under the Bank and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020, Act No. 5, and the Revised Operational Guidelines for Bureaux De Change 2015 (the Guidelines), has revoked the licenses of 4,173 Bureaux De Change Operators.
It added that the affected institutions failed to observe at least one of the following regulatory provisions:
- Payment of all necessary fees, including licence renewal, within the stipulated period in line with the Guidelines.
- Rendition of returns in line with the Guidelines.
- Compliance with guidelines, directives and circulars of the CBN, particularly Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) and Counter-Proliferation Financing (CPF) regulations.
The list of affected BDC operators is available on the bank’s website and can be accessed here.
More guidelines to follow
The CBN added that it is revising the regulatory and supervisory guidelines for Bureau de Change operations in Nigeria.
It noted that compliance with the new requirement will be mandatory for all stakeholders in the sector when the revised guidelines become effective.
Recall that CBN recently released a proposed revised regulatory guidelines for Bureau De Change (BDC) operators.
In the 51-page documents published on its website, the CBN, among several rules, listed various non-permissible activities and sanctions for licenced BDC operators.
In another report, Aminu Gwadabe, the president of the Association of Bureau De Change of Nigeria, reacted to the proposed requirement recently issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
He stated that association members will consider mergers if the suggested operating principles are implemented.
Weird names of BDC operators approved by CBN
Legit.ng reported that the CBN has made headlines with its recent decision to recommence the distribution of foreign exchange, allotting $20,000 to every qualifying BDC operator nationwide.
This decision follows a hiatus of three years since the apex bank initially halted foreign exchange transactions with BDC operators.
Yet, an examination of the CBN data reveals a peculiar trend in the names associated with several BDCs, suggesting potential irregularities in their representations.
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Source: Legit.ng
