Naira’s confidence, stability gradually returning – Cardoso

Olayemi Cardoso, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said the confidence in the naira is “gradually returning”, noting that the apex bank is focused on ensuring stability.

Cardoso disclosed this at the World Bank Nigeria development update themed ‘Staying the course: Progress amid pressing challenges’ held in Abuja on Thursday.

“The confidence in the naira is gradually returning as a result of the policies that we are already undertaking, which goes back to the whole issue of Orthodox monetary policy, that is really what begins to encourage people to hold onto naira,” Cardoso said.

“Over a period of time, we believe that the confidence will continue to go up,” the CBN governor added.

He explained that orthodox policies are implemented to give confidence in the naira, adding that this will bring trust in the naira.

The CBN governor said the apex bank is putting out efforts to ensure stability in the exchange rate which has continued to fluctuate since the unification of the market segment last June.

“The CBN doesn’t determine the exchange rate. The fundamentals do. We will provide policies to make sure the policies are there in the market,” he said.

Cardoso said the CBN is focused on ensuring transparency and sanctioning those who would like to take advantage of the market.

He noted that the monetary policies are driving FX inflows which have seen the country’s reserves grow to about $39 billion in October.