Central Bank to offer $100m on spot market – traders

The Central Bank will offer $100 million on the spot market on Wednesday as part of efforts to boost dollar liquidity and prop up the naira currency, traders said citing a memo from the regulator.

The Central Bank said forex purchase will be paid for immediately in naira after the release of bid rates. The naira closed on Tuesday at 306.10 per dollar on the official market and 410 on the black market.

The bank had been intervening on the forward market to meet demand, but customers with immediate need for dollars were piling back into the black market, causing the naira to begin to weaken in that segment.