Merit Ibe
The Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), has called for stronger collaboration between the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the operators to aid naira stability.
President of the Association, Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, who made the call in Lagos, explained that working in concert with the apex bank in the past, which yielded positive results, helped the naira to appreciate at the foreign exchange market and also maintain relative stability. He said that the relevance of Bureau De Change (BDCs) became critical way back in 2008, when the nation began experiencing crisis of liquidity.
He noted that in 2009 when a similar crisis persisted, it took the collaborative efforts of the CBN and the BDCs to contain the free-fall in naira exchange rate. While commending the management of the CBN, especially its governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, for identifying with BDCs, he argued that similar efforts in the past had helped turn around any difficulty the naira faced.
“With a sincere and deep appreciation to the management of the Central Bank, especially the governor, Godwin Emefiele, for identifying to collaborate with us as this has always turned around any difficulty the naira is facing on the economy. We believe that with our takeoff on Monday, we are going to have more positivity.”
The ABCON President also charged the apex bank to increase financial tracking within the system, noting that this will help to check speculations in the forex market; a major reason for the volatility of the naira exchange rate.