CBN Clears $7 Billion Forex Backlog-Cardoso

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, announced on Wednesday that the Federal Government has successfully cleared the outstanding $7 billion foreign exchange backlog to various firms following a thorough verification exercise by forensic auditors.

Cardoso made this announcement at the launch of Nigeria’s Regulatory Policy Framework, organized by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council. The event, known as the regulators’ forum, took place at the State House Conference Hall in Abuja.

In his address, Cardoso expressed optimism that clearing the $7 billion backlog would alleviate the challenges associated with the repatriation of funds by businesses, multinationals, and foreign investors.

He stated, “In addressing foreign exchange liquidity constraints, decisive steps have been taken to clear the outstanding $7 billion forex backlog to ensure that businesses, multinationals, corporations, and foreign investors can repatriate funds seamlessly.

“This initiative has restored confidence among market participants and reinforced Nigeria’s commitment to honoring financial obligations in a timely and efficient manner. Regarding the $7 billion backlog, we have cleared the verified claims.

“We also reviewed the unverified ones, and I believe we are at the final stages of separating what qualifies as fully verified. We will surely be paying out those funds that have been verified by the forensic auditors. It is unfortunate, to be honest, that it has taken so long.

“But the truth is that there were many practices that occurred which should never have happened in the first place. That said, we are committed to strengthening our market and creating better trust in what investors naturally desire and deserve.”

Related News:

• CBN Warns Banks on FX Code Breaches
• CBN FX Compliance Report Due January 31
• CBN Successfully Auctions N756bn in Treasury Bills

Earlier, PEBEC Director-General, Princess Zahrah Audu, explained that one of the key indicators for the commission was that the majority of companies expected the government to provide a stable and predictable policy environment.

Audu also echoed the President’s sentiment, stating that the policy framework aims to achieve this goal.

She said, “We are going to help you become a part of the formation of this policy because one of the things we actively encourage our MDAs to do is to have sectoral stakeholder engagement in smaller groups. Now there is a more thorough process to go through before a policy is passed into law.

“It is very important to note that this administration will do things differently. We are constantly asking for your input because we don’t think we know it all. When you look at business from a government perspective, it is very different from looking at it from a private sector view.

“It is important that we always balance the two and see ourselves as stakeholders. Our doors will always be open, and we will be very responsive when it comes to calls and emails. As earlier said, my predecessor has left a viable platform for us to build on.”