Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Yemi Cardoso, has disclosed that law enforcement agencies are investigating foreign exchange transactions valued at approximately $2.4 billion.
Governor Cardoso highlighted that these transactions are regarded as ineligible for payment.
This was disclosed after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting held in Abuja on Tuesday, March 26.
The CBN governor explained that the meticulous forensic audit conducted on these transactions, uncovering numerous discrepancies and rendering them invalid.
Positing that the CBN encountered transactions marred by issues concerning their authenticity.
As a result, Deloitte management consultants were required to conduct a comprehensive forensic analysis spanning several months to scrutinize the legitimacy of these forward-contracted transactions.
However, during the audit process, it was established that several transactions failed to meet the criteria for validation, including where allocations worth millions of dollars were disbursed without corresponding requests, and some transactions lacked proper documentation or were illegal.
“In the cause of that forensic audit, we determined that a number of these transactions did not qualify. In some cases, you had some requests, which well you actually had some allocations that were made in millions of dollars, which were never requested for.
“You also had somewhere they had no Naira and they were also allocated, you know, huge sums, the foreign exchange and the list goes on and it was for that reason that we refused to validate those particular transactions.
“We refused to validate them because you know apart from the fact that documentation was not satisfactory in many cases they were outright illegal and the law enforcement agencies of course are now looking into those transactions that are as far as we’re concerned, not valid to be paid.” Cardoso said.
Cardoso emphasized the CBN’s commitment to maintaining price stability and fighting inflation.
He stressed the need for strict adherence to the core mandate of the central bank, ensuring the restoration of the average Nigerian’s purchasing power.
Meanwhile, the MPC announced a significant hike in the benchmark interest rate to 24.75 percent as part of efforts to curb inflation, accompanied by adjustments to reserve requirements for banks, aiming to tighten control over the money supply and stabilize prices.
Furthermore, the CBN anticipates a gradual moderation of inflation rates by May. Cardoso addressed concerns regarding the forex market, citing the need to foster competition and transparency.
In addressing cryptocurrencies and its regulation, specifically Binance operations, the CBN’s limited role was clarified, highlighting collaboration with relevant authorities while enforcing cryptocurrency regulations under the purview of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Chinedum Anayo