ABUJA, Aug 5 – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says its ongoing monetary and foreign exchange reforms are yielding positive results, with the gap between the official naira exchange rate and Bureau de Change (BDC) rates narrowing to below 2% as the country’s external reserves surpassed $52.5 billion.
Speaking at the Central Bank Fair in Gombe, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria Olayemi Cardoso, represented by the Acting Director of Corporate Communications and Investor Relations, Hakama Sidi-Ali, said the improvements reflect the impact of reforms introduced by the apex bank over the past three years.
According to Cardoso, “The naira continues to strengthen, with the spread between official and Bureau de Change rates now below two per cent.”
He attributed the improved convergence between the official and parallel foreign exchange markets to disciplined monetary tightening, exchange rate reforms and greater transparency in the foreign exchange market.
The CBN also pointed to improving macroeconomic indicators as evidence that its reform programme is gaining traction, highlighting easing inflationary pressures, greater foreign exchange market stability and rising external reserves.
Nigeria’s external reserves recently climbed above $52.5 billion as of July 17, 2026, exceeding the CBN’s annual target and reaching their highest level in 17 years.
According to Cardoso, the growth in reserves has been driven by sustained foreign exchange inflows and renewed investor confidence in Nigeria’s economic outlook.
He said the central bank has implemented a series of reforms over the past 34 months aimed at promoting sustainable economic growth, supporting job creation and reducing poverty.
These measures include the unification of the foreign exchange market, the ongoing banking sector recapitalisation programme, the introduction of the Non-Resident Bank Verification Number (NRBVN), the B-Match foreign exchange trading platform, and the Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028.
Cardoso also disclosed that the CBN has partnered with the Financial Markets Dealers Association (FMDA) to introduce the Nigerian Overnight Financing Rate (NOFR) as a benchmark for short-term funding transactions.
According to him, the benchmark is expected to provide a transparent, market-based reference rate for money market transactions while aligning Nigeria’s financial markets more closely with international standards.
The CBN’s latest update comes as policymakers continue efforts to restore macroeconomic stability, strengthen investor confidence and improve the efficiency of Nigeria’s financial markets through a combination of monetary tightening, foreign exchange reforms and financial sector modernisation.
