The Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) has expressed concerns about the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directive requiring all Bureaux De Change (BDC) operators to reapply for new licences.
TimesNow.com.ng reported that the CBN gave the directive in a circular issued by its director of financial policy and regulation department, Haruna Mustafa, on Wednesday, May 22, 2024.
In the circular, the CBN also instructed the BDCs to meet the capital requirements for their licence category within six months.
Reacting to the development, Aminu Gwadabe, president of ABCON, stated that the requirements are huge.
Punch reports that Gwadabe stressed that the new requirements are not in line with global practices.
His words:
Speaking further in a chat with TimesNow.com.ng, the ABCON president added that the association is working on the appropriate response.
He said:
Meanwhile, Sidi Ali Hakama, the CBN’s acting director of the corporate communications department, has explained the new guidelines aim to ensure BDCs play a more significant and positive role in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market.
Hakama added that the six-month grace period allows them to adjust their operations to meet the new standards.
Earlier, TimesNow.com.ng reported that Nigerians identified the emergence of two cryptocurrency platforms as the reason for the recent fall of the naira.
The initial decline of the naira was attributed to alleged market manipulation by Binance.
Nigerians have blamed the latest depreciation on new crypto exchange platforms, namely BYBIT and BITGET.
Proofreading by James Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at TimesNow.com.ng.
Source: TimesNow.com.ng
