Connect with us

General

Naira Volatility: EFCC Resumes Clampdown on Unlicensed BDC Operators

Published

3 years ago

on

  • BDC operators warn against naira speculation,hoarding
  • To Introduce a unified retail-end forex market.
  • It Supports All Measures Adopted CBN to Deal with Saboteurs
In the face of weakening  naira, EFCC resumed clampdown on unlicensed BDC  Economic Financial Crimes Commission on Friday arrested 34 suspected currency speculators over alleged foreign exchange fraud.

The anti-graft agency in a statement on its official X account on Friday said the suspects were apprehended by its Taskforce on Currency Mutilation, Dollarisation of the Economy and Forex Malpractice.

It noted that the sting operation followed credible intelligence about illegal sales of dollars at the Wuse Zone 4 area of the Federal Capital Territory Abuja.

The EFCC resumed clampdown on currency speculators as the naira started losing steam to the dollar days after gaining both at the official and parallel markets.

Posting a photo of the 34 arrested currency speculators, the EFCC said their arrest came on the heels of the EFCC’s consistent efforts to sanitise and stabilise the foreign exchange market.

Meanwhile,the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) has warned economic saboteurs speculating and hoarding the naira to desist from such act.

ABCON president, Aminu Gwadabe, in a statement on Friday, also said the association would establish a unified retail-end forex market to tackle volatility and boost regulatory compliance among the operators.

He said that the strategic plan meant to unify operators from different cadres of the market would include the inauguration of state chapters for market coordination.

This, he noted, was to ensure integration and administration of a united market structure in the BDC sub-sector.

Advertisement

He added that ABCON will upgrade technology in its quest to help in the fight against the sabotage of CBN’s reforms.

“The new blueprint for a united retail end forex market structure would ensure the deployment of a centralised, democratised and liberalised online real-time trading platform.

“Finally, we also condemned in its entirety the seemingly reappearance of illegal economic behaviours in forex conversion and P2P trading that pose another recent surprises in naira volatility.

“I, therefore, want to warn that while surprises are the new normal, resilience is also the new skill,” he said.

The ABCON boss said that he was confident that the apex bank and relevant security agencies were adopting all measures to deal with any saboteurs and retain successes recorded on naira appreciation.

Advertisement

“It is, therefore, in our own interest to desist from hoarding and speculation as it is a burble and will burst in no distance time,” he added.

Mr Gwadabe said that ABCON would extend its automation policies and platforms to all BDC operators across Nigeria markets and upgrade its business process platform (formerly called SAAZ Master).

Mr Gwadabe said that the association would sustain its engagement with regulatory agencies, security operatives and other government apparatus to entrench a secured and thriving forex market that is supportive of regulation and government.

“Part of our vision for a united retail-end forex market include activating geo mapping and automated BDCs physical office verification exercise using the Remote Gravity Physical verification apps.

“This will enable forex buyers to easily locate where BDCs offices are for effective and seamless transactions,” he said.

Advertisement

Related Topics:
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *