CBN directs BDCs not to sell FX above 2% margin

…extends BVN for Diaspora customers

By Odunewu Segun

With Bureau de Change getting their forex officially from banks, the Central Bank of Nigeria directed them not to sell above tow per cent of the buying rate.

In a statement signed by the Acting Director, Trade and Exchange Department of the CBN, W.D Gotring, authorized dealers must also not sell forex to any BDC beyond a maximum of 30,000 dollars per week.

In the statement, CBN directed that a BDC operator shall nominate its preferred dealer or a bank to procure the said amount from only that bank in a week. The selling rate by the dealer to BDCs should be the buying rate from International Money Transfer Operators plus a margin not exceeding 1.5 per cent.

The statement which warned that any BDC operator that violated the directives would be sanctioned mandated BDC operators to render weekly report of purchases from authorized dealers to CBN’s trade and exchange department.

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Meanwhile, the apex bank has extended the deadline for Bank Verification Number (BVN) registration for Nigerians abroad till December 31, 2016.

In a circular to all banks, CBN Director, Banking and Payments System Department, ‘Dipo Fatokun, the exercise, previously meant to end in June 30 this year was extended by another six months to ensure that all Nigerian bank customers in the diaspora are enrolled.

The extension, he said, may be attributed to lack of accessibility to registration centres and unavailability of registration centres in some cities where Nigerian population is high.

“From January 2017, all Nigerian bank customers in the Diaspora should have the BVN attached to their accounts. Any bank customer without the BVN will be deemed to have inadequate Know Your Customer and such account will be operated as a ‘no customer initiated debit until the BVN registration is done,” he said in a statement.

Faokun said the regulator would deploy more registration centres in locations with high Nigerian population. He urged Nigeria banks’ customers in the Diaspora to seize the opportunity of the extension to register and link their BVN to their bank accounts.

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