The Central Bank of Nigeria has said that plans are underway to increase access to foreign exchange and also ease the pressure on the demand for forex.
This was made known by the bank’s committee addressing forex availability at a meeting on Thursday.
According to the apex bank, travelling Nigerians shall have access to $4,000 forex and $5,000 for business trips.
The CBN also said it would increase the amount of forex allocated to banks, in order to ensure the legitimate needs of Nigerians are met.
Earlier, Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, had charged deposit money banks to desist from denying customers the opportunity to purchase forex.
He had also called on DMBs not to discriminate in provision of forex to legitimate customers for whatever reason.
“The CBN has said that all banks must make foreign exchange available at all times, so that anyone who wants to buy BTA, PTA, medical fees, student school fees and all the eligible invisible purchases are not forced to go and queue in the parallel market,” the bank’s committee explained.
It added, “So, what the Central Bank is doing is to encourage all banks to make sure that there is available forex at all times, and that this information is communicated on all platforms.”
The reasons to access forex, the CBN stated, include for Personal Travel Allowance, Basic Travel Allowance, tuition fees, medical payments, as well as for Small and Medium Enterprises transactions or for the repatriation of Foreign Direct Investment proceeds.
