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NEWS YOU CAN TRUST I **MONDAY 04 FEBRUARY 2019 I VOL. 15, NO 238 I N300
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BUY
SELL
$-N 358.00 361.00 £-N 466.00 476.00 €-N 405.00 413.00
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EXPOSED: The sleazy face of N306/$
Inside Nigeria’s FX racket where faceless agents pocket over N32bn annually
LOLADE AKINMURELE usinessDay has unravelled what could very well be the biggest FX racket since the days of military dictator Sani Abacha.
B
Investigations reveal that faceless agents in Nigeria are exploiting the country’s multiple exchange rates to devastating effect and they allegedly have the backing of regulators. BusinessDay has learnt
that these agents, handpicked by the Central Bank for oil and non-oil exporters who need naira to settle domestic administrative obligations from workers’ salaries to overhead costs, could be making exchange rate gains of over N32 bil-
lion annually. Here’s how the racket plays out. When an exporter notifies the CBN of intentions to buy naira, the regulator recommends an agent who will manage Continues on page 45
Market
Spot ($/N)
3M
362.71 306.75
0.17 12.03
I&E FX Window CBN Official Rate Currency Futures
($/N)
FGN BONDS
TREASURY BILLS
NGUS MAR 27 2019 364.89
g
6M
5Y
-0.24 14.26
-0.39
14.60
NGUS JUN 26 2019 365.34
@
10 Y 20 Y -0.16 -0.08 15.00
15.04
NGUS DEC 24 2019 366.24
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Inside 19 Experts on 2019
As the 2019 elections approach, BusinessDay brings you ‘19 for 2019’, where 19 experts tackle issues that will shape Nigeria for the next generation. Today, Higo Aigboje shares his outlook for the stock market in 2019 See Page 2
GAC resolves rift between Ambode, Lagos lawmakers P. A3 Atiku hails endorsement by Northern elders, Middle Belt Forum, others P. A8
New minimum wage means more woes for cash-strapped Nigerian states DAVID IBIDAPO
W
ith the newly approved national minimum wage of N27,000, eight Nigerian states could be devoting their entire internally generated revenue to the payment of workers’ salaries alone.
The Federal Government of Nigeria approved the new minimum wage for state governments, which is 50 percent higher than the previous N18,000, in response to the agitation of the labour union since 2018, but said it would pay its workers Continues on page 45